South Korea’s Korea Internet & Security Agency (KISA) is introducing a major overhaul of its performance evaluation framework for blockchain subsidy programs in an effort to eliminate the problem of so-called ghost applications. The reform is intended to address concerns that some government-funded blockchain services have failed to gain market traction or have stopped operating despite receiving public financial support.
The revised framework shifts the emphasis from simply confirming that a project has been completed to determining whether the resulting service continues to operate effectively and achieves meaningful commercial adoption. The initiative reflects a broader effort by South Korean authorities to ensure that public funding produces sustainable technological and economic outcomes.
KISA is strengthening post-project oversight by evaluating whether government-funded blockchain services remain operational and achieve measurable commercialization after launch rather than merely completing development milestones.
Large-Scale Audit to Cover 95 Blockchain Projects
According to financial sector sources, KISA plans to conduct a comprehensive performance audit by December covering 95 government-supported initiatives completed between 2021 and 2025. The review will include 83 blockchain proof-of-concept projects and 12 application programming interface (API) development support programs.
Unlike previous assessments that primarily measured whether original project objectives had been fulfilled, the upcoming review will introduce new indicators designed to evaluate medium- and long-term market performance. The agency is expected to develop these metrics with input from industry professionals and academic experts while also examining domestic and international approaches to technology program evaluation.
Among the new criteria under consideration are commercialization performance, market sustainability, and continued service availability. These additions are intended to provide a more comprehensive assessment of whether publicly funded blockchain initiatives deliver lasting value beyond the development phase.
Operational Verification Becomes a Key Requirement
A central feature of the revised framework is a stricter post-project management system that directly verifies whether funded applications and web services remain functional after deployment.
KISA plans to access subsidized services directly to confirm that they continue to operate as intended. If a service cannot be adequately assessed through external testing or requires additional verification, agency officials are expected to conduct on-site inspections to evaluate operational conditions, maintenance practices, and overall system management.
The agency will directly inspect funded blockchain services, including on-site reviews when necessary, to ensure applications remain functional and properly maintained after deployment.
The enhanced oversight is designed to reduce the likelihood that government-supported applications become inactive shortly after launch, an issue that has generated criticism in recent years.
Performance Metrics Expand Beyond Job Creation
The agency is also revising the way it measures the economic impact of blockchain subsidy programs. Previous evaluation methods drew criticism for relying heavily on supplier-oriented indicators, particularly the number of new full-time jobs created within the blockchain industry.
Management performance reports published in 2023 and 2024 used employment growth as the primary indicator for measuring the activation of new digital services. During those periods, the number of newly created full-time positions reached 72 and 102, respectively, with performance scores calculated relative to annual project budgets.
Under the revised framework, KISA intends to supplement employment data with additional indicators that better reflect commercialization success, user adoption, and broader market impact. The goal is to provide a more accurate assessment of how government-supported blockchain projects perform once they enter commercial operation.
Findings to Shape Future Blockchain Policies
The results of the audit are expected to influence future blockchain support initiatives. KISA plans to identify successful projects and publish case study collections in both Korean and English, examining the factors that contributed to their commercialization.
The agency is expected to analyze business strategies, operational practices, and market adoption patterns demonstrated by successful services. These findings will be incorporated into future policy development, funding criteria, and evaluation standards for blockchain programs.
KISA plans to use the audit findings to establish new commercialization benchmarks and develop future blockchain funding policies based on proven market success rather than development completion alone.
The institutional changes are widely viewed as a response to criticism that earlier subsidy programs lacked sufficient post-project oversight. Reports of inactive applications, limited downloads, and unresolved user issues had raised concerns that previous evaluation methods emphasized project execution and employment statistics while giving insufficient weight to user adoption, long-term service operation, and commercial viability.
