KT provides digital document storage for Shinhan Bank

South Korea's KT Corp announced on Friday the launch of a new digital document storage service at Shinhan Bank, linking with a public electronic document center.

The service uses blockchain technology to securely manage the registration history and information of documents, and it is the first of its kind in Korea. It also allows for real-time registration and access to documents, and it is recognized by the government for legal effect.

KT said that the service will help Shinhan Bank reduce resources generated by paper document management and improve work efficiency. It is also expected to contribute to the protection of financial consumers by preventing damage, loss, and forgery of documents.

The service is the result of a strategic partnership between KT and Shinhan Bank, which was formed last September with the goals of exploring joint business opportunities focused on the public electronic document center and expediting Shinhan Bank's digital transformation initiatives.

Through this partnership, both companies have established an electronic workshop inside Shinhan Bank and are linking the electronicization of various important documents such as loan contracts arising from banking and storage of KT's authorized electronic document center.

KT is the pioneering entity in Korea to administer document registration history and information using blockchain technology.

The company's experience in operating Internet data centers (IDC) is instrumental in managing a public electronic document center that incorporates advanced technical standards allowing for real-time registration and viewing.

With government authorizations as a public electronic document center and intermediary, KT is well-positioned to extend legal validity from document storage to distribution.

Consequently, KT has unveiled the KT Paperless platform, orchestrating the entire lifecycle of digital documents from their inception to storage and distribution.

Write to Ji-Eun Jeong at jeong@hankyung.com