South Korea-based DGB Daegu Bank, which is part of the DGB Financial Group (DGBFG), a banking holding company based in Daegu, has partnered with SK Telecom, a South Korean wireless telecommunications operator.
Through the partnership, both organizations aim to enhance Daegu Bank’s IM Bank app’s security by using 5G enabled quantum cryptography technology.
SK Telecom is a key part of the SK Group, which is one of the nation’s largest chaebols (a large conglomerate that’s controlled by an owner or family based in South Korea). SK Telecom is the country’s largest wireless carrier. The company notably leads the domestic market with around a 50% share. Meanwhile, Daegu Bank is one of the largest regional banks in South Korea. It mainly services customers based in the Daegu-Gyeongbuk region.
The IM Bank app will reportedly allow Samsung Galaxy A Quantum owners to use the handset’s quantum random number generator (QRNG) for enabling greater security. The QRNG chipset that has been embedded in the Galaxy A Quantum mobile phones is able to generate “true” random numbers that are not predictable, according to SK Telecom.
The technology will be used to generate one-time passwords at the time when IM Bank clients are sending funds or creating accounts. SK Telekom and Daegu Bank said they’ll be looking into other use cases for the technology.
Quantum tech has also been used by many other financial service providers. As reported, the BBVA continues to work on quantum computing data projects. Last month, the BBVA had shared results of its quantum computing tech proof of concepts for improving currency aribtrage and enhancing porfolio management.
Crypto or blockchain industry participants have also raised concerns about whether the binary model based digital currencies of today, like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), will be ready for the time when quantum computers have matured.
Ethereum (ETH) might not even have quantum resistance on its roadmap, the Quantum Resistant Ledger (QRL) team revealed in June 2020.