This week, we’re featuring Erica Kang in our Lisk Community Member Spotlight. She is a force in the blockchain space, dedicated to making the world aware of the technology’s benefits. Erica has also helped spread the word of Lisk in South Korea and assisted us tremendously in organizing meetups during the Lisk Asia Tour last year. We had the chance to chat to learn more about her and what she does every day.
Jennifer: Tell us a bit about yourself and your background.
Erica: My name is Erica Kang and I am the founder of KryptoSeoul, a community builder in Seoul, South Korea. I am also a partner at Blockwater Capital and an advisor to the Korea Blockchain Association. I also run an English YouTube Channel called KryptoSeoul hosting talks about the South Korean market. Previously, I worked in telecommunications and banking. I received a Master’s Degree from Stanford University, majoring in International Policy Studies.
J: What is KryptoSeoul?
E: KryptoSeoul is dedicated to delivering local content about promising blockchain projects to the Korean community. It runs local online channels on Kakaotalk and Brunch, and hosts offline meetups at least once every three weeks. We have great advisors on board to help us find the right projects to work with in order to go in the healthiest direction. We are not a fund, so we strictly evaluate the projects we wish to work with.
J: Can you tell us a bit more about the KryptoSeoul YouTube channel? What kinds of videos can potential visitors expect to find there?
E: The KryptoSeoul YouTube channel features a mix of videos from KryptoSeoul meetups and weekly live videos discussing the South Korean market. It also features interviews I conduct with Korean projects that are receiving a lot of attention.
J: What attracted you to Lisk? What are the biggest benefits of Lisk, in your opinion?
E: Lisk is a vibrant project with young enthusiasts in the team. I fell in love with the team as soon as I met its members. For me, the most attractive feature of Lisk is that it tries to make it easy for everyone to build their own blockchain. Building accessible tools is crucial to make blockchain technology mainstream.
J: How did you first get into blockchain?
E: A friend from the startup world shared with me his interest in blockchain; that’s how I first got introduced to the concept. Then I did my own studying and went to a seminar last year. It was there that I met my former boss — that’s how I got into this world.
J: What is the potential of blockchain technology? What industries do you see blockchain disrupting in a significant way?
E: Honestly, I do not believe blockchain technology will be the panacea to all global problems. However, it will efficiently cut out the middlemen in some industries where the process is just inefficient and tedious. For instance, I think the gaming, entertainment, trade, and distribution industries will significantly benefit from the implementation of blockchain technology.
J: What is the Korea Blockchain Association and what does it do?
E: The Korea Blockchain Association is currently involved in getting local blockchain players (especially exchanges) together to find a common ground for best practices. Recently, it launched a self-regulation committee, in which the members in the committee commit to being open to self-regulation. Although it isn’t legally binding, it is still a significant step.
J: What is a typical day like for you?
E: It usually consists of an average of five meetings, either in the form of a physical one-on-one meeting or a conference call. I rarely work in the office, since I am busy during the day hopping to many meetings. I try to stay localized by working 90% of the time in Seoul, Korea. Since I have a family to take care of, I usually try to keep a healthy life-work balance, which is quite a challenge in the blockchain industry.
J: What is the blockchain ecosystem in Korea like?
E: It seems like the Korean market is recognized as a hotspot for blockchain companies — it is passionate and fast-paced. Although 80% of the ecosystem consists of retail investors, the importance of the other 20% is getting bigger and bigger. The 20% consists of crypto funds, blockchain projects (protocols and dApps), associations, media, etc. Since it is a small country (and market), competition is quite fierce and the market is rather fragmented, which can be detrimental to the growth of the industry.
J: What do you feel is the most important blockchain conference to date?
E: To date, I feel Deconomy was the most memorable — especially since I took part in it in the initial stages. It featured a deep storytelling element and made me want to sit down and just listen to the talks throughout the entire conference.
J: What industry sites and blogs do you read regularly?
E: I usually go through major media websites like Coindesk and Cointelegraph. I also look at Korean bloggers’ posts, since it gives you Koreans’ perspective on certain issues. For more technical content, I look at the writings by Nonce and Decipher, both of which are Korean teams.
J: What do you like to do in your free time?
E: I usually like to exercise every day, if possible. I used to be an amateur dancer and athlete, so I am used to stretching and working out. Also, I love hanging out at cool cafes and reading!
J: What is one piece of advice you would give to someone looking to pursue a career in blockchain?
E: Be prepared before you enter, since you won’t be able to study much once you fully dive into the space. Also, be passionate but stay healthy (mentally and physically). The industry can burn you out in a short period of time, as there is so much to do and so much to catch up with.
