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The Korea Post, which has a revenue of some $2 billion and oversees the entire postal service of South Korea, is set to meet with Goldman Sachs’s crypto research team. According to Bloomberg, they will meet at the end of the month in Hong Kong to study digital assets, blockchain, and its relationship with artificial intelligence. The news comes as a positive boost in a country whose government was so hostile to cryptocurrencies during much of this year and last.
Although the Korea Post has no real plans to invest in cryptocurrencies, they are likely interested in blockchain’s potential in automating their existing systems. This all indicates that we are closer to mainstream acceptance from existing institutions. Despite this year’s unprecedented bearish market, the overall news all year from existing institutions and major banks has been clear: cryptocurrencies are here to stay. Goldman Sachs has however refused to comment on the future meeting with the Korea Post.
This news comes at a time when Goldman is reportedly not opening up a dedicated floor for crypto-trading and research, as was announced yesterday. Instead, they are putting the project “on hold” and will be focusing on mostly custodial services in regards to crypto for the time being. The news was met with a large sell-off in global crypto markets, with Bitcoin and all cryptocurrencies experiencing double digit losses across the board.
However, although the market responded so harshly to Goldman’s announcement regarding their crypto trading floor, Goldman is still closely monitoring the crypto space. Despite market sentiments, nowhere did Goldman imply that they will cease all crypto-related activities. And this is evidenced by their future meeting with the Korea Post.
This is also interesting given that the South Korean government has been largely hostile to cryptocurrencies in general, even going as far as saying Bitcoin was “corrupting the youth.” However, South Korea’s president, Kang Seong-ju, has publically said that he had met with David Solomon, the chief executive of Goldman Sachs, and cryptocurrencies were discussed. “Since cryptocurrencies are considered to have potential, and are something people are watching, we’ll need to learn the strengths and weaknesses,” he said in Seoul.
East Asia has been one of the hubs of the crypto space for some time now. China and South Korea have been leading the charge, with some of the highest levels of trading volume and interest in the entire world. The Korea Post’s admission of its investigation into blockchain-related technology and digital assets seems to indicate that South Korea is considering implementation at the highest levels. In regards to logistics, this makes sense — blockchain has the potential to eliminate the third-party verification necessary for not only the postal service, but in healthcare, law, and city planning. Perhaps we will know more details once the meeting between the Korea Post and Goldman comes to a close by the end of this month.