Korean firm says it can make blockchain faster

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Korean firm says it can make blockchain faster

A young Korean blockchain company thinks it has what it takes to revolutionize the technology, and its already got a Nobel laureate on board.

SymVerse, a six-month-old blockchain firm, held its first demonstration event in Yeouido, western Seoul on Wednesday.

“The SymVerse platform is the ideal network to operate decentralized applications,” said Choi Soo-hyuk, CEO of SymVerse. “Our network is an all-in-one platform characterized by a multi-blockchain structure, which facilitates higher speeds and functions.”

According to the company, the SymVerse blockchain platform will be capable of facilitating high speed transactions as it does not require smart contracts. The slow speed of blockchain is typically seen as one of its biggest drawbacks and the biggest obstacle to the widespread adoption of the technology.

The platform will also feature a unique identification system. The system will enable users to set up new accounts using the same SymID, making it easier for them to move balances between accounts.

Some 30 companies have already signed up to launch their applications on the SymVerse network. Partners include Hancom Secure - an IT security firm affiliated with Korea’s leading office suite software developer - as well as Chainflix - a peer-to-peer video sharing platform that allows creators and viewers to earn and mine coins.

The company’s foreign advisors also sent congratulatory videos for the occasion. Thomas Sargent, the co-recipient of the 2011 Nobel Prize in Economics, serves as one of the advisors for the project.

“SymVerse is the only blockchain company in the world with a Nobel Prize laureate serving as an advisor,” a SymVerse spokesman emphasized. “All our advisors are very active in providing us with their input on developing our network.”

CEO Choi is an adjunct professor at Korea University’s graduate school of information security who teaches blockchain. He previously worked for the Korea Information Society Development Institute and earned his doctorate from Northwestern University.

SymVerse, which was founded in May, released its white paper in November. It is planning to be in operations at the beginning of next year.

“We plan to showcase our mainnet so that we can […] break time limits on our second demo day,” said Choi. “By the third demo day, we hope to achieve complete decentralization.”


BY KIM EUN-JIN [kim.eunjin1@joongang.co.kr]
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