Publicly Listed South Korean Company Building Global Network of Cryptocurrency Exchanges

A South Korean company listed on Kosdaq, the trading board of Korea Exchange, has announced the launch of its own bitcoin exchange and a plan to build a global network of cryptocurrency exchanges. Coinlink will be the country’s first bitcoin exchange run by a Kosdaq-listed company.

Also read: Six Legal Issues Bitcoin Faces in South Korea

Coinlink Launching Next Month

Founded in 1996 and formerly known as Accupix, Fourth Link’s main business is selling coal to railway companies and power plants, both domestically and internationally. The company also constructs railway communication systems and national information networks.

The South Korean conglomerate is listed on Kosdaq, the trading board of Korea Exchange (KRX). Kosdaq is the Nasdaq counterpart in South Korea and KRX is the sole securities exchange operator in the country. In June, Fourth Link acquired a blockchain-based biometric authentication security certification platform Certon for four billion won.

Fourth Link announced on Wednesday that its cryptocurrency exchange called Coinlink will be beta launched in August, through its subsidiary Certon, CCTV News reported. While there are already several large bitcoin exchange platforms in South Korea such as Bithumb, Coinone, and Korbit, Coinlink will be the first to be operated by a Kosdaq-registered company, the publication detailed.

First Bitcoin Exchange by Kosdaq-Listed Company

Park Sung-joon, Head of the Dongkuk University Blockchain Research Center, said that the cryptocurrency exchange market “involves transactions of several hundred billion won to several trillion won per month,” according to Sedaily. He conveyed (loosely translated):

Coinlink, which is operated by Fourth Link, is the first cryptocurrency exchange operated by a Kosdaq-registered company. Therefore, not only will it have a secure system, but it will also offer transparency and reliability as a Kosdaq-registered company.



Fourth Link also announced that the exchange will not operate independently from the rest of the world, as exchanges typically do. Instead, the company is “building a global network” of cryptocurrency exchanges.

Global Network Expansion Plans

Certon Vice President Kim Byeong-jin said on Wednesday that the company is “preparing to expand our global network by signing a partnership agreement with Glosfer.” The South Korean company Glosfer offers bitcoin transfer services and claims to be “the first remittance service based on blockchain technology in Korea,” according to its website. The transfer is done by having customers send their bitcoins to Glosfer, which are then converted into Korean won. The amount is then wired to the destination account, the company’s website described.

Furthermore, Kim described Certon’s “strategic alliances with major cryptocurrency exchanges such as in China and Japan,” CCTV News reported. He also said the company is working with partners in the U.S., the Philippines, Indonesia, Ethiopia, and South Africa, among other countries, adding that:

We are establishing an overseas network to promote strategic alliances with other major cryptocurrency exchanges.

What do you think of Fourth Link building a global network of cryptocurrency exchanges? Let us know in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Kosdaq, and Fourth Link

Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our tools section.