In South Korea, over 2 trillion South Korean won (KRW, or $2.4 billion USD) was spent on advertising on mobile platforms last year, surpassing that of advertising on cable TV - 1.8 trillion KRW - for the first time. While Instagram influencers in the US charge up to $100,000 USD for a sponsored post, industry insiders say brands in South Korea pay from 100,000 KRW to more than 2 million KRW for a single social media post, depending on the loyalty of the person’s followers.

Beauty and fashion brands are at the forefront of using social media influencers who have millions of followers. We sat down with Jude Kim, who runs Global Business Development at The SMC in Seoul, Korea and serves clients like Google and eBay, and asked him for his vision regarding the Asian (kol/influencer) market.

We are fascinated by the cryptocurrency space — not just because it is so closely intertwined with our daily lives, but also because finance, tech and marketing is at the epicentre of one of the most exciting developments running through our economy today: digital disruption, globalisation and the drive for greater transparency. Indeed, there is much marketing can learn from how the finance industry is embracing the forces shaping a transparent future.

As our second edition reveals, transparency is now coming faster than ever, to all industries, including the industry of influencer marketing. Tapping into the finance world and social media, we strive to deliver transparency to a market that has traditionally been dominated by opaque behemoths. So we took a moment to sit down with one of our closest partners in the midst of the hustle and bustle that is New York City to talk through some of the latest developments blockchain may bring to the influencer industry.

What follows is a unique interview with experienced digital strategist and Vice-President Influencer Marketing at MMC Alayna Palgon to hear her take on this evolving frontier.