According to local reports in South Korea, the demand for hardware wallets is growing exponentially. The demand is due to attempted hacks last year against domestic trading platforms like Upbit and Bithumb.
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Regional reports in detail The demand for South Korean hardware wallets is increasing
South Korean cryptocurrency traders want to keep their digital assets more secure after some horrors from local exchanges in 2017. The cryptocurrency trading platform Upbit and Bithumb were both targeted last year in attempts to crack the company’s hot wallets. Additionally, the recent Coincheck exchange hack in Japan also scared South Koreans, leading more individuals to get their hands on some form of cold storage.
Many cryptocurrency enthusiasts around the world use cold storage devices such as Trezor, Ledger, Bitbox and Keepkey. However, South Koreans also have some local options to choose from in the near future when it comes to hardware wallets and more. Cold-store hardware manufacturers who are selling products in South Korea or who are planning to launch this year include Key Fair, Penta Security, Coldwelt, and K-Sine.
Two local options
Key fair CEO Lee Chang-keun has developed the “Key Wallet Series”, which uses a proprietary algorithm that is linked to a dedicated security chip. There are also features called “Pro and Touch” that use fingerprint recognition and NFC communication with smartphones. The key wallet can contain multiple cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin Core, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, Dash, Ethereum Classic, Ripple and Litecoin.
Another company that offers cold storage in South Korea is Penta security although the beta test of the products should be completed in June of this year. Penta’s offering is a hardware wallet, similar to a credit card, that uses an extended key store and offers multiple authentication functions. This includes a one-time password, two-factor authentication and binding to the user’s mobile device.
Two other hardware wallet manufacturers plan to offer South Korean cold storage products
Two other companies planning to bring hardware wallets for cryptocurrencies to the Korean market are Kay Sine and Coldwelt. Kay Sines subsidiary S-Tech Co., Ltd will launch the ‘Touch X-Wallet’, which uses biometric fingerprint authentication, later this year. It also offers an electronic signature function through BLE communication with a smartphone application.
The French company Coldwelt will also sell its hardware wallet to Koreans later this year, with a device similar to Ledger’s Nano S. According to Coldwelt, the product will accept up to 20 different cryptocurrencies.
What do you think of the increasing demand for hardware wallets in South Korea? Let us know in the comments below.
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Images via Shutterstock, Key Wallet, Touch X-Wallet and the Penta Crypto Wallet.
Tags in this story
2FA, Biometrics, Bitcoin Cash, Bitcoin Core, Bithumb, Cold Storage, Cryptocurrencies, Ethereum, Hardware Wallets, N-Featured, NFC, Ripple, Security, Upbit
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Jamie Redman
Jamie Redman is the News Lead at Bitcoin.com News and a Florida-based financial tech journalist. Redman has been an active member of the cryptocurrency community since 2011. He has a passion for bitcoin, open source code and decentralized applications. As of September 2015, Redman has written more than 5,000 articles for Bitcoin.com News on the disruptive protocols emerging today.
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