Korea Minting and Security Printing Corp. (KOMSCO) CEO Sung Chang-hoon, left, and Hana Bank CEO Lee Ho-seoung pose with a memorandum of understanding certificate during a ceremony at the bank's headquaters in Seoul, Feb. 27, for a joint project aimed at using recycling materials that are left over after manufacturing banknotes and coins. Courtesy of KOMSCO
By Yi Whan-woo
The Korea Minting and Security Printing Corp. (KOMSCO) announced on Monday that it has partnered with Hana Bank in a campaign to generate profits by using recyclable materials left over from the production of banknotes and coins.
It said the two sides signed a memorandum of understanding for the co-development of merchandise made from hundreds of tons of materials that would otherwise be burned as waste.
The deal comes as KOMSCO seeks to make a business breakthrough as the country’s sole manufacturer of banknotes and circulating coins at a time when cash usage is declining.
The state-run company has been making pens and calendars as promotional gifts by using the materials that are left over after printing out banknotes.
KOMSCO considered Hana Bank an ideal partner, as the country’s third-largest commercial lender has been creating pillows, clocks, cushions and other merchandise from recycled materials as part of its Money Dream Campaign since 2023.
The campaign played a key role in Hana Bank's success, earning five awards at the 2024 Effie Awards Korea, which honors outstanding marketing campaigns.
“The joint project is meaningful as it turns the byproducts that are generated during the creation of cash into something valuable,” KOMSCO CEO Sung Chang-hoon said. “We will continue to create model cases of a circular economy and a social value by fully using byproducts from the entire currency manufacturing and distribution process."
KOMSCO added that the joint project represents “a step toward creating valuable, eco-friendly products while addressing environmental challenges and promoting sustainability.”
KOMSCO also plans to begin selling its merchandise online to the public starting this month. Among the items, pens have previously been available only through customized business-to-business orders, while calendars were freely distributed as New Year's gifts.
According to KOMSCO, about 500 tons of waste is generated in the money printing process and is burned every year, contributing to environmental pollution and waste problems.
English (United States) ·