MEDIUM

What MEDIUM does

Medium (주식회사 미디움) is a Seoul-headquartered blockchain infrastructure company founded in October 2018 that develops high-performance enterprise blockchain technology combining proprietary software acceleration (MxP, which boosts Hyperledger Fabric throughput by 5x or more) with a custom FPGA-based hardware processor (MBPU, marketed as the world's first blockchain-specific processing unit). Its product stack centers on MDL, an enterprise blockchain solution certified at 15,000+ TPS by the Korean Testing & Certification Association (KOTCA) and accredited by KOLAS, together with Medium Chain, a two-layer platform consisting of MDL_HP (high-performance mainnet) and MDL_HU (EVM-compatible layer supporting ERC20/ERC721/ERC1155 tokens), supplemented by Medium Bridge for cross-chain interoperability, MDL Wallet, the MDL Test Lab benchmark service, and consumer-facing products including the mergy AR application and the KOK content platform. The company operates a hybrid B2B/B2C model: enterprise customers — including Korean government agencies (Korea Minting and Security Printing, Korea Expressway), financial institutions (IBK Industrial Bank for CBDC PoC, BNK Busan Bank for metaverse banking), and large corporates (Samsung SDS PoC, SWEPT Foundation, PeerSafe) — pay for MDL subscription licensing (MDL_X), system integration consulting, R&D/POC/BMT services, and hardware (MBPU) delivery, while the Medium Chain platform monetizes B2C digital-asset services (NFT, DeFi, STO, MD Pay). Notable expansion moves include the 2022 flagship Busan International Blockchain Business Center (BIBC) partnership with Busan Metropolitan City valued at approximately 5,000 billion KRW, the 2022 acquisition of UK-based game publisher EASI Games to enter metaverse social casino, and a 2021 strategic investment of roughly 6 billion KRW from JeneBio alongside a $10M investment intent from Sarson Funds. The company has reported profitability in the first half of 2021 and is led by CEO/CTO Kwon Yongseok (권용석), with operating subsidiaries including Medium Games (established 2021) and a majority stake in EASI Games (acquired 2022).

Name

MEDIUM

Legal name

주식회사 미디움

Website

https://themedium.io

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Medium (미디움) is a Seoul-based blockchain infrastructure company founded in 2018 that builds high-performance enterprise blockchain software (MxP) and hardware (MBPU) accelerators, selling MDL licensing, Medium Chain platform services, and consumer digital-asset products to Korean government, financial institutions, and enterprise customers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Enterprise Blockchain Infrastructure

NAICS

Computer Systems Design and Related Services (5415), Software Publishers (5132)

SIC

Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373)

akta.pro primary industry

Interoperability & Integration Middleware (ERP/core banking connectors, messaging, APIs, cross-chain to permissioned) (FSAPAIAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Interoperability & Cross-Chain Infrastructure (Bridges, Messaging, Atomic Swaps) (FSAGAMAI), Digital Asset Custody & Key Management (MPC, HSM, Wallet Infra) (FSAGAMAB), Blockchain Data & Indexing Infrastructure for Finance (Nodes, Indexers, Oracles) (FSAGAMAL)

Keywords

• Enterprise blockchain infrastructure
• Blockchain hardware acceleration
• High-performance blockchain platform
• Digital asset services
• Cross-chain interoperability

Headquarters

HQ city

Seoul

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. B2B Solution Licensing & Subscription: Enterprise blockchain solution sold through on-demand licensing and subscription models (MDL_X). Includes system integration consulting, R&D/POC/BMT services. Subscription tiers with free trial for performance testing.
2. B2C Platform Services: Digital asset services including NFT issuance, STO services, DeFi, digital payments (MD Pay) delivered through Medium Chain platform to B2C market.
3. MDL Explorer & Infrastructure Services: Platform services including MDL Explorer for blockchain exploration, bridge services for cross-chain interoperability, and wallet services.
4. Strategic Investment: Received 6 billion KRW strategic investment from JeneBio (제넨바이오) and signed $10 million investment intent agreement with Sarson Funds.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

MEDIUM develops and sells high-performance blockchain infrastructure combining proprietary software acceleration (MxP) and hardware acceleration (MBPU), delivering the MDL enterprise blockchain solution (15,000+ TPS, Hyperledger Fabric SDK compatible) and the Medium Chain platform (mainnet plus EVM-compatible layer) to enterprise and consumer markets. Beyond infrastructure, it operates digital asset, wallet, bridge, NFT/DeFi, AR metaverse (mergy), and digital content (KOK) services on top of its blockchain stack.

Product overview

MEDIUM operates as a comprehensive blockchain technology company offering a platform-plus-modules architecture. The core product portfolio centers on MDL (blockchain solution with 15,000+ TPS performance) and Medium Chain (platform combining MDL_HP high-performance mainnet with MDL_HU EVM-compatible layer), supported by acceleration technologies including MxP (software) and MBPU (hardware). The service layer includes Medium Bridge (cross-chain interoperability), MDL Wallet, mergy (AR/AI-powered spatial communication), and KOK (digital content platform). The company also provides MDL Test Lab for performance benchmarking. This integrated ecosystem enables B2B enterprise solutions and B2C consumer services, with particular focus on digital assets, NFTs, DeFi, payments, and metaverse applications.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• MDL: Enterprise blockchain solution providing high-speed blockchain performance (15,000+ TPS) based on Hyperledger Fabric SDK, offered with Dashboard and Installer tools. Free version available with 2,000 TPS + Dashboard.
• Medium Chain
• Medium Bridge
• MBPU
• MxP
• mergy
• KOK
• 미디움 게임즈 (Medium Games)
• Meta Ripae

Products and services

• MDL Blockchain Solution Enterprise blockchain solution delivering 15,000+ TPS with full Hyperledger Fabric SDK compatibility, including user-friendly Dashboard and Installer tools. Available with a free 2,000 TPS evaluation tier and KOLAS certification; used by Korean enterprises, government entities, and financial institutions for mission-critical blockchain workloads.
• Medium Chain Platform Omnipotent blockchain platform combining MDL_HP high-performance mainnet (15,000+ TPS) and MDL_HU EVM-compatible network supporting ERC20, ERC721, and ERC1155 tokens, with built-in bridge services and consortium network capabilities for B2B and B2C services.
• Medium Bridge Cross-chain interoperability service that enhances connectivity between different blockchain networks, allowing users to switch between chains and access Medium platform ecosystem services; supports token and data movement across heterogeneous ledgers.
• MDL Wallet Digital wallet for managing various digital assets within the Medium Chain ecosystem, enabling users to hold, send, and receive tokens, NFTs, and other on-chain assets, including KOK/MDL mobile wallet access.
• mergy Reality-based communication service combining augmented reality and AI object recognition to let users scan physical objects and spaces, leave digital content (including NFTs), and bridge real and virtual/metaverse experiences.
• KOK Comprehensive digital content platform offering movies, TV, webtoons, games, and shopping in a single integrated mobile channel, leveraging the Medium Chain for content and commerce.
• MBPU (Medium Blockchain Processing Unit) World's first blockchain-specific hardware processing device (Model MDLAC001) with built-in FPGA parallel processor for electronic signature and verification (ESDSA); 10-core MBPU001, PCIe 3.0 x16 interface, low-profile single-slot card, 60W max power — sold as standalone hardware accelerator for enterprise blockchain nodes.
• MxP (Medium eXPress engine) Proprietary software acceleration technology that improves Hyperledger Fabric blockchain performance by 5x or more through CPU multi-core optimization, cache-based performance enhancement, and DB I/O minimization; certified by KOTCA at 14,142 TPS and licensed as a product unto itself within MEDIUM's technology stack.
• MDL Test Lab Free blockchain performance benchmark service using Hyperledger Caliper, providing TPS measurements, transaction latency metrics, and expert online support for evaluating blockchain performance before purchase.

Quantifiable outcome

• 14,142 TPS verified by KOTCA (Korean Testing & Certification Association) performance testing conducted January 27, 2021
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

AI capability2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

17 partnerships are on record, tiered major, flagship, core and minor.

• 피터팬majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 December 2022Partnership for blockchain-based real estate 'price bidding and trust guarantee' platform construction announced December 2022.
• 젤리페이지 (Jellypage)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2022Business MOU signed August 2022 for blockchain-based digital reading platform development.
• 이지게임즈 (EASI Games)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2022Acquisition of UK-based global game publishing company EASI Games in April 2022. Strategic move to develop metaverse social casino and tamper-proof gaming platform.
• 부산시 (Busan Metropolitan City)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2022Flagship partnership for Busan blockchain special zone development. Agreement to establish BIBC (Busan International Blockchain Business Center) with approximately 5,000 billion KRW investment. B-Space entry in March 2022.
• 머지리티 (Mergity)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 December 2021Metaverse specialist startup partnership for multi-metaverse platform 'mergy' launched December 2021. Collaboration for metaverse platform development.
• 팡스카이majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 December 2021NFT-based game joint business contract signed December 2021. Partnership accelerates platform business through combined blockchain gaming capabilities.
• 스웨프트 파운데이션 (SWEPT Foundation)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2021Contract for global cross-border payment intermediary platform construction signed July 2021. Platform enables Korea-China cross-border payment services using Medium's blockchain technology.
• BNK부산은행 (BNK Busan Bank)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2021MOU signed February 2022 for metaverse-blockchain combined digital asset financial business entry. Presented metaverse banking services at BWB 2022. Strategic partnership for blockchain special zone development.
• 두빛나래소프트majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2021MOU signed June 2021 for blockchain-based QR intermediary platform construction, combining Medium's blockchain technology with the partner's platform capabilities.
• 월튼체인 (Waltonchain)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2021Partnership for China market joint development announced April 2021. Combined efforts for blockchain market expansion in China market.
• 피어세이프 (PeerSafe)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Partnership signed January 2021 to build ASEAN's largest trade finance transaction platform combining Medium's blockchain technology with PeerSafe's trade finance expertise.
• 씨와이 (C-way)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 December 2020Business agreement signed December 2020 for blockchain-cloud ERP digital convergence collaboration.
• 삼성SDS (Samsung SDS)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2020Startup support agreement MOU signed November 2020. PoC (Proof of Concept) for blockchain technology verification completed with Samsung SDS. Strategic relationship for enterprise market access.
• 단국대학교 (Dankook University)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2020Autonomous blockchain convergence research institute research agreement signed September 2020. Academic collaboration for blockchain research.
• 인프라웨어 (Infraware)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2020MOU signed May 2020 for blockchain-based electronic document services partnership, combining Infraware's capabilities with Medium's blockchain technology.
• LG CNSmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020MOU for Busan distribution platform blockchain construction business signed 2020. Collaborative partnership for regional blockchain solution deployment.
• 고려대학교 (Korea University)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Blockchain joint research and industry-academia cooperation MOU signed 2018. Academic partnership for blockchain technology R&D.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Polygon Labs: Ethereum scaling and sidechain ecosystem offering high-throughput execution for enterprise and consumer apps. Comparable as a higher-throughput, broadly-deployed incumbent addressing the same enterprise scaling pain points but with established market position.
• Solana Labs: High-throughput public Layer-1 with established developer ecosystem and Web3 gaming footprint. Comparable as a high-TPS L1 used for consumer and Web3 applications, providing competitive ceiling on transaction throughput benchmarks.

Direct peers

• Klaytn: Korean enterprise-grade Layer-1 blockchain (backed by Kakao) targeting B2B services, metaverse, and NFT. Most direct comparable as another Korean enterprise blockchain operator pursuing a similar B2B+B2C platform strategy.
• Fantom Foundation: High-performance EVM-compatible Layer-1 targeting enterprise and DeFi workloads with high TPS focus. Comparable as a competing high-throughput smart contract platform chasing both enterprise and dApp ecosystems.
• Hedera Hashgraph: Enterprise-focused distributed ledger pursuing high throughput (10,000+ TPS) with governance council including Fortune 500 members. Comparable as a high-performance enterprise blockchain positioned for government and financial institution contracts.
• Algorand: Layer-1 blockchain optimized for enterprise, fintech, and CBDC use cases with high throughput and permissioned network support. Comparable as enterprise-targeting high-TPS chain competing for the same institutional and government contracts.
• R3 Corda: Enterprise DLT platform purpose-built for financial institutions and regulated industries with privacy and interoperability features. Comparable as a permissioned-focused enterprise blockchain targeting banking and capital markets workloads.
• VeChain: Asia-based enterprise blockchain offering high-throughput infrastructure for supply chain, retail, and government applications. Comparable as an East Asia-headquartered enterprise L1 pursuing similar B2B licensing and platform-services revenue model.
• LayerZero: Cross-chain interoperability protocol enabling messaging and asset transfer across chains. Comparable as a cross-chain bridge/infrastructure provider directly overlapping with Medium Bridge services.

Others

• Hyperledger (Linux Foundation): The open-source consortium blockchain foundation on which MDL is built. Comparable as the underlying platform layer whose SDK compatibility Medium monetizes; an enabling rather than competing counterpart.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCVKnjcssIUNmd5KWGUxnZYg
• Facebookfacebook.com/themedium.official

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about MEDIUM