Korea Exchange Bank and Korea University Address Shortage in Blockchain Talent
April 24, 2019 by Akshay Makadiya
South Korea’s largest foreign exchange bank, Korea Exchange Bank (KEB) has inked an agreement with Seoul-based private research institute Korea University to cultivate qualified blockchain professionals. Also, the collaboration seeks to apply revolutionary blockchain technology into various areas of banking.
Also read: Forbes Publishes List of Billion-Dollar Companies Using Blockchain Technology
Subscribe to the Bitsonline YouTube channel for great videos featuring industry insiders & experts
Addressing the Global Shortage of Blockchain Experts
KEB, a subsidiary of one of Korea’s largest banking groups, Hana Financial Group, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Korea University to address the global crisis of scarcity in blockchain talent, as reported by Korea Times.
Information on the research institute’s plan to foster blockchain tech experts is scarce. However, last year Korea University partnered with the Korean subsidiary of crypto exchange Huobi to research both the blockchain and crypto spheres.
Also, the tie-up seeks to bridge academic research of distributed ledger technology (DLT) with realistic and applicable financial solutions for the bank. As such the collaboration will see joint research and development initiatives to develop and integrate blockchain solutions with many of the existing financial services and products the bank provides
Interestingly, both parties have also agreed on blockchain-based data sharing.
A KEB Hana bank representative divulged that the bank and Korea University would initially issue student ID cards leveraging DLT as parts of its blockchain-powered data sharing initiative:
“Students will have their new IDs issued much earlier than expected because no in-person submission of related papers are required. Review of necessary documents will be conducted through student information sharing among the relevant departments.”
Korean Universities to Serve the Next Batch of Blockchain Talent
Just days back, two South Korean universities — Yonsei University and Pohang University of Science and Technology — announced a plan to co-develop an entirely independent blockchain campus with its own cryptocurrency.
About the partnership, Postech president Kim Doh-yeon was quoted on Business Korea stating “It is meaningful that POSTECH and Yonsei University jointly design the future of core technology and establish educational and research foundations for future talent to prepare for the technology.”
Last year, the South Korean government began training its first batch of 42 students in blockchain technology.
Korea Exchange Bank’s Active DLT Participation
KEB’s announcement to partner with Korea University comes a month after KEB filed forty-six blockchain-related patents. A key takeaway from the myriad of patent filings was its plan to develop DLT-based internet banking services.
As such, the latest efforts from the KEB are in line with the bank’s broader agenda of testing blockchain technology’s potential to upgrade services.
Earlier in the year, KEB became a member of Hyperledger — an umbrella project of several open source blockchains and the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance.
Similarly, other South Korean banks have also dipped their toe into the blockchain ocean. In December last year, the South Korean banking giant Shinhan Bank revealed to initiate an internal program to use distributed ledger technology to decrease human error.
Can blockchain tech transform the banking sector? Share your views in the comments section.
Images via Pixabay
