Small and Medium-sized Business Goes Blockchain in South Korea

A major association of South Korean small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) has signed a memorandum of understanding with a blockchain venture – potentially allowing for blockchain technology-powered peer-to-peer lending and real-time business transactions.

The Federation of Professional Economic-person Societies, a union of South Korean SMBs with links to several government ministries, said on April 13 that it had signed a deal with Qnapse, a company that has previously worked on blockchain platforms for law firms and other bodies.

The union says its forthcoming platform will allow for real-time transactions on Qnapse’s QCoin network, with credit card-guaranteed blockchain-based inter-SMB lending and purchasing options. These options, say the union, could eventually do away with companies having to wait for periods of up to a few days for credit card transactions to clear – often an obstacle for South Korean SMB operations.

Qnapse has had an active last few months. In March, the company struck a deal with Hyupsung University, in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province. The deal will see the university issue degree certificates on a blockchain platform in order to ensure authenticity, and could also see the university begin offering blockchain-themed education courses.