[Power K Women] Choi Hwa-in, CEO of Choicemuonoff and Blockchain Industry Trailblazer: "You Must Ask Yourself Tough Questions"

Choi Hwa-in, CEO of Choicemuonoff

"Interpreter" Bridging Blockchain Markets, Technology, and Regulation

From the Legislative Floor to the Blockchain Industry

Leading the Future Direction of Digital Currency Transformation

Choi Hwa-in, CEO of Choicemuonoff and Blockchain Evangelist, describes herself as "someone who translates blockchain technology into the language of the public." After spending around 10 years in the National Assembly, gaining experience in both legislative and administrative processes, she has been bridging the gap between technology, the market, and regulation in the blockchain industry since 2013.

Having experienced the earliest changes in the market so completely that she is sometimes called the "Australopithecus" of the industry, she has drawn on her field expertise from government, financial institutions, and the public sector to propose policy directions that connect digital currency, payment infrastructure, and national currency strategies.

Her career trajectory aligns closely with the development of the domestic blockchain industry. She has served as an Industry and Economic Innovation Commissioner on the Presidential Committee on the Fourth Industrial Revolution, a member of the Korean New Deal State Advisory Committee, an advisory member of the Financial Supervisory Service’s Blockchain Development Forum, and an operating committee member for the Busan Blockchain Regulation-Free Zone. She also contributed to investigations by the National Police Agency and the National Intelligence Service, helping to establish institutional and industrial foundations for blockchain and digital assets.

She participated in the establishment of the Korea Blockchain Association, helping to lay the groundwork for self-regulation among exchanges. Currently, she develops patents and information and content for the mass adoption of blockchain and digital assets, and continues her educational activities. If the financial market has analysts who interpret trends in companies and industries, then the blockchain sector has Choi Hwa-in as an evangelist who connects the languages of technology, markets, and regulation from a techno-sociological perspective. The following is a Q&A with CEO Choi.

Choi Hwain, CEO of Choicemoonoff and blockchain evangelist, is being interviewed by The Asia Business Daily. Photo by Hyunghan Hur

-You are called a blockchain evangelist. Could you briefly introduce yourself?

▲Simply put, a blockchain evangelist is someone who "translates the technology of blockchain for the general public." My role is to serve as a kind of interpreter at the boundary of the markets and regulation, making different "languages" compatible. I worked in the National Assembly for about 10 years, experiencing both legislative and administrative procedures, and since 2013, I have been working in the blockchain industry, closely observing both technological change and the public's challenges in understanding it. Since then, my focus has been on explaining technology in non-technical language.

Choicemuonoff is a company that develops patents, information, and content to facilitate the acceptance of blockchain and digital assets in the market, and also provides lectures and educational activities. We are also planning services to identify fraudulent coins and high-risk projects.

-How did you first enter the blockchain and virtual asset industry?

▲It started quite by chance. Kim Jin-hwa, the former CEO who founded Korbit, the country's first virtual asset exchange, in 2013, was a university junior of mine. I received an offer for an executive position to handle government relations, but I did not join. However, that opportunity led me to discover Bitcoin for the first time.

At first, it was difficult to accept the concept of "digital currency." But then I realized that it had been about eight years since I had used physical cash. Payments were already digitized; there was no reason why currency should not also become digital. That was when I started investing in Bitcoin—it was quite early on.

Globally, the market was just getting started. I was, in a sense, an "Australopithecus" or "ammonite" level early investor. Through those investments, I realized that the very nature of currency and money itself was changing. From 2016 to 2017, I began studying blockchain and digital assets in-depth and launched related activities.

Cho Hwa-in, CEO of Choicemoonoff and blockchain evangelist, is being interviewed by The Asia Business Daily. Photo by Huh Younghan

-You participated in the founding of the Korea Blockchain Association in 2017. What was your role at that time?

▲In the second half of 2017, the market was expanding rapidly and massive amounts of capital were flowing into exchanges, but there was essentially no government guidance. We determined that there was a need for an association to explain technology and market trends to the government and the public and to establish common industry standards. With former Minister of Information and Communication Chin Dae-je as the inaugural chairman, I contributed to the founding of the Korea Blockchain Association.

At the time, there were not even any internationally standardized guidelines, but we proactively established a framework for self-regulation. We set foundational criteria for exchange safety, such as separating customer assets from proprietary assets, storing more than 80% of digital assets in cold wallets, and building security systems. A cold wallet is a crypto wallet that protects assets by storing the private key, the core of cryptocurrency transactions, entirely offline and isolated from the internet to guard against hacking and cyber threats.

We also launched and operated the “Blockchain Campus,” a short-term educational program designed to improve public and management understanding. At that time, there were virtually no structured courses for learning about blockchain, so this program was met with great enthusiasm.

-What have you done to bridge the gap between technological advancement and institutional/public understanding?

▲In the early days of the industry, even experts often had only fragmented information. Few people could explain technology, finance, regulation, and industry as one integrated structure. From the beginning, I took on the role of gathering scattered information and explaining it in a three-dimensional, structured way.

Along the way, I served as an advisor or operating committee member for various institutions and local governments, including the Financial Supervisory Service, Samsung Securities, the Busan Blockchain Regulation-Free Zone, and the Military Manpower Administration. Rather than unconditionally champion technology, I have tried to consider both the regulatory concerns and market needs, and to communicate in terms both sides can understand.

What I have continuously explored is not simple phenomena like "Bitcoin price increases" or "declines." Instead, my role is to analyze and explain the underlying structures behind price fluctuations, the factors that influence the market, and how digital assets—once seen as absurd—gain meaning as they are socially accepted.

-Among your recently filed blockchain patents, is there a technology you would especially like to highlight?

▲That would be "Mu-Vault." This is a technical safety mechanism that enables the recovery and inheritance of assets if the private key for a digital asset wallet is lost or the owner passes away. With virtual assets, losing the private key essentially means there is no way to access those assets. If the owner dies suddenly, heirs might not even know the assets exist or be able to initiate inheritance procedures. We had also prepared a related service in collaboration with an insurance company, but it is currently on hold due to a lack of data for determining reinsurance rates. I believe that when the market matures, it will eventually become commercially viable.

Choihwain, CEO of Choicemuonoff and Blockchain Evangelist, is being interviewed by The Asia Business Daily. Photo by Huh Younghan

-You have worked in a nascent industry. That must come with significant challenges.

▲The process of bringing technology to commercial service was extremely arduous. There were times when I felt betrayed by industry colleagues, and I have witnessed seemingly upstanding people suddenly turn into fraudsters. The stagnant progress in regulation is also frustrating. On a personal note, I recently faced vision loss due to acute retinal detachment and underwent three surgeries. I also suffered a severe fall on the subway stairs.

-How do you steady yourself during hard and agonizing times?

▲Rather than being someone with “strong conviction,” I am someone with “strong questions.” It would be great to be unshakeable in any situation, but age has not made me any less susceptible to being shaken. However, I have learned that if the visible despair and setbacks that shake me are only 3% of the iceberg above the surface, then the silent resilience and essence that enable me to endure make up the other 97% below the water. I try not to be distracted by the loud 3% I can see and instead focus on the strong questions that get me moving again.

-What are the moments you find most enjoyable in life? What is your life motto?

▲Rather than thrilling, grand events, I find joy in very short, modest moments of leisure. Watching the leaves of a street tree swaying in the wind while standing in front of a crosswalk or feeling the breeze slide between my fingers—these tiny pleasures are what help me endure life. The habit of recognizing such small joys helps me get through difficult times.

My life motto is “Nevertheless.” While everyone desires vivid joy and perfect happiness, those moments are rare in real life, and unwelcome events or accidents come unexpectedly. Nevertheless, I aim to stoically endure the circumstances I am given and to live with gratitude simply for the fact that I can go out and meet someone on my own two feet.

-What advice would you offer to young women building their careers in uncertain environments?

▲For women, establishing their place in society has probably meant continually having to prove their existence and ability—a process marked by unending uncertainty. Along the way, they have surely faced a countless sense of defeat and a variety of challenges. However, regardless of ultimate success or failure, the very fact that they have continued to prove their existence and are still here standing strong means they are already succeeding in the process of proving themselves. Falling short of a perfect outcome does not mean that all the time up until now has been a failure. As someone who has been through the same journey, I feel a deep sense of solidarity with them. I want to send encouragement to all the young women who are holding their ground in the midst of uncertainty.

▶About Choi Hwa-in, CEO of Choicemuonoff

A blockchain specialist who not only researches digital assets but also designs the "money of the future." She studies new orders connecting stablecoins, blockchain, currency, and finance, and helps set the direction for both policy and industry. She received her undergraduate and graduate degrees from Yonsei University’s Department of History and earned a doctorate in public administration from Sungkyunkwan University. She has served as an Industry and Economic Innovation Commissioner for the Presidential Committee on the Fourth Industrial Revolution, a member of the Korean New Deal State Advisory Committee, an advisory member of the Financial Supervisory Service’s Blockchain Development Forum, and an operating committee member for the Busan Blockchain Regulation-Free Zone. She has also consulted for investigations by the National Police Agency and the National Intelligence Service and served as an advisor for blockchain pilot projects at the Military Manpower Administration. Currently, she is a member of the Gyeongsangbuk-do Public Institution Attraction Committee.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.