NEAR establishes a Web3 center in South Korea and plans to expand into Asia

The NEAR Foundation, the non-profit organization that governs the layer 1 blockchain NEAR Protocol, announced Wednesday that it is establishing a Web3 hub in South Korea to strengthen its ties with blockchain projects in Korea and Asia.

According to a press release, the NEAR Foundation’s new Korea hub aims to attract local blockchain projects and professionals to the NEAR Protocol, with a particular emphasis on Web3 gaming.

NEAR’s new venture will also hold events such as developer and investor meet-ups, hackathons, and by supporting blockchain and Web3 communities in universities to promote the growth of its blockchain community in Korea.

NEAR Protocol, like Ethereum and Solana, is a layer 1 blockchain that provides a platform for developers to create decentralized apps (dApps).

Leading venture capital firms including as a16z, FTX Ventures, Coinbase Ventures, and Hashed have invested in the layer 1 blockchain, which is currently managing a fund worth roughly US$800 million to drive ecosystem growth.