South Korean electronics giant Samsung has revealed that it will include cryptocurrency and blockchain support features to its new budget smartphone lines.

According to a report by local news site Business Korea, Samsung has launched Samsung S10 with crypto cold wallet features that support at least 4 cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH). Now the giant firm tends to add this feature to its other Galaxy smartphone models.

Moreover, Samsung also intends to partner with some telecom companies for blockchain-powered mobile identification cards (digital identity authentication) allowing its users to use mobile phones as a form of secure digital ID and other local currencies. Samsung senior managing director of the product strategy team Chae Won-Cheol commented that: “We will lower barriers to new experiences by gradually expanding the number of Galaxy models that support blockchain functions.

After launching the crypto-support budget smartphone lines in South Korea, Samsung plans to expand the launch to offer its US and Canadian customers with these affordable mobiles.

Samsung is one of the few mobile companies to take the lead in applying blockchain to smartphones. According to an unnamed source close to Samsung, the firm is purportedly working on having a blockchain of its own, and could launch its own cryptocurrency token called “Samsung Coin”.

HTC has also recently introduced its budget blockchain-enabled smartphone that is reported to be launched in Q3 of 2019. HTC budget versions are predicted to be a heavy competitor for Samsung.