North Korea announced Thursday that it would hold a global conference on blockchain and cryptocurrency from April 18 through 25 in Pyongyang.
According to the KFA Korean Friendship Association’s home page, a foreign participant would pay 3,300 Euro per person (about 4,250,000 won in South Korean currency). It said the conference would be an occasion for participants to share knowledge and vision on blockchain and cryptocurrencies and explore possibilities of doing business together.
North Korea has reportedly been mobilizing funds through cryptocurrencies, a move to avoid the U.S.-led UN sanctions on the Communist country.
Kim Hyung-joo, chairman of the Korea Blockchain Industry Promotion Association (KBIPA) said, “North Korea seems to communicate with Russian over cryptocurrency and blockchain.”
Global Blockchain Innovative Capital (GBIC) CEO Lee Shin-hye described North Korea as the best test bed for blockchain technology. She said North Korea has great potential for upgrading the industry through blockchain.
North Korea is regarded as an optimal country to create a blockchain-based smart city. The blockchain could become a tool for developing countries to catch up with the rich industrialized countries.
As long as the South Korean government maintains a closed-door policy on cryptocurrency and blockchain, South Korea may fall behind North Korea in blockchain business, a KBIPA executive said. He added it is no exaggeration.
