Korea urged to reap benefits of blockchain and cryptocurrency tech

A professor gives a lecture at Korea University's School of Information Security. / Courtesy of Korea University

Ripple offers funding to Korea University for blockchain research

By Baek Byung-yeul

Ripple Senior Vice President Eric van Miltenburg / Courtesy of Ripple

Korea has traditionally not been a major player in the international financial market but things are different when it comes to trading cryptocurrencies. Korea has been rather active in digital money as it is the world's third-largest cryptocurrency market by volume.

In the blockchain and cryptocurrency world, Korea has been at the center of attention. Last week, the country's top court recognized cryptocurrencies as an asset with measurable value.

Despite blockchain and cryptocurrencies being regarded as promising new technologies that people can't ignore, the Korean government has been criticized for its strict cryptocurrency regulations.

As the country has imposed a total ban on domestic initial coin offerings (ICOs) since last September, blockchain companies here are moving their businesses to Singapore or Switzerland for their ICOs. To prevent such a migration and nurture blockchain-related business here, the National Assembly made a proposal to allow domestic ICOs last week.

In such circumstance, an official from the U.S.-based tech company Ripple urged the government to ease regulations on the market.

In a recent interview with The Korea Times, Eric van Miltenburg, senior vice president of global operations at Ripple, said regulations should protect consumers and businesses.

On the other hand, Van Miltenburg said he sees a parallel between the current cryptocurrency boom and the early stages of the internet boom in the early 2000s and said governments need to focus more on the positive impact that blockchain and cryptocurrency technologies can bring.

"We just think it needs to be a regulation that balances the need to protect consumers without stalling or prohibiting innovation," Van Miltenburg told The Korea Times in a telephone interview June 1.

"We've seen that in other countries and in other technologies where you found a balance. Frankly if you think back to the early age of the internet, there were some people that only looked at the negative aspects of the internet saying we should shut it down for a while until we figure out what's going on, and what's good and what's bad.

"But a more plausible approach would look at specific use cases and applying regulations in areas that would allow protection for users. So I think that philosophy would certainly pertain to regulations in Korea as well."

Via its network platform RippleNet, Ripple has been providing blockchain-powered payment and settlement network services between banks, digital coin exchanges and corporations.

Providing cryptocurrency education to foster related industry

With the soaring interest in blockchain, Ripple announced recently it would donate over $50 million to 17 universities around the world.

Titled the "University Blockchain Research Initiative" (UBRI), the program is comprised of collaborative partnerships with universities globally to support academic research, technical development and innovation in blockchain, cryptocurrencies and digital payments.

The 17 universities include prestigious schools such as the University of Pennsylvania, MIT and Princeton in the United States; Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands; the University of Waterloo in Canada and the Australian National University. Among universities in East Asian countries, Korea University is the only school that made the funding list.

While partnering with Ripple, these schools will determine their own research topics and priority areas of focus in blockchain technology.

Van Miltenburg said Ripple launched the initiative to stimulate understanding and innovation in blockchain technology.

"At the core, it's about Ripple partnering with some of the top universities around the world. It is focused on supporting academic research and technical development related to blockchain, cryptocurrencies and digital payments," Van Miltenburg said.

The senior vice president said the UBRI program will eventually benefit the company as the program will produce people who have a better understanding of blockchain technology.

"By engaging with universities, they have a lot of interests in this topic. And frankly, in talking to faculties, there's not enough in terms of resources to be able to satisfy the demand they are seeing," he said.

"We very much believe a rising tide lifts all boats. In terms of the blockchain ecosystem we've already been thinking this will raise the quality of thinking and understanding of the technologies and certainly Ripple is a part of the blockchain ecosystem and we will benefit from that."

Van Miltenburg also stressed Ripple decided to work with universities as it thought the practical use of blockchain technology was not widespread yet.

"I think around the world there is a lot of excitement and enthusiasm about this new technology. Frankly, I think it is important that more people understand the real use cases of blockchain technology. From the beginning, Ripple has been focused on how you improve the efficiency of moving money and value across borders," he said.

"We are taking a practical approach. It's not about studying the theories around blockchain but how you apply the blockchain in a way that's useful and that will create real value for customers and society."

Korea University has been keen to study blockchain technology. Last month, the university's graduate school of information security rolled out a blockchain security study center. Korea University said it will study the safety of the algorithms behind the technology.

"We are looking for schools already involved in blockchain that have some professors that have seen the potential of blockchain. We definitely wanted to help accelerate what those faculties and administrators are trying to do," Van Miltenburg said.

He added that there is a chance Ripple will expand its collaboration with other universities around the world including those in Japan and China.

"Certainly Japan and China are important parts of our market. I think we don't see this as the end of the UBRI program. This is a program that will evolve over time. You could imagine we will consider adding other universities to the program over time. Schools in Japan and China could be part of that," Van Miltenburg said.