Dongbaekjeon Launches Event for High Fuel Cost Support Fund Users – 10,110 Winners to Be Selected via Automatic Entry

The recent announcement from Busan, South Korea, regarding financial relief for residents grappling with high fuel costs has sparked conversations far beyond the Korean Peninsula, touching on universal themes of household budget strain and municipal innovation. While the specifics of the “고유가 피해지원금” (high fuel price victim support fund) program are rooted in Busan’s local economy and its unique regional currency, the Dongbaekjeon, the core challenge it addresses—helping families manage volatile energy expenses—is one that resonates deeply in communities across the United States, including our focus here: the Minneapolis-Saint Paul metropolitan area.

In Busan, the program works by providing direct financial assistance to citizens, which they can then choose to receive and spend via the Dongbaekjeon, a local digital and physical currency designed to stimulate spending within the city’s slight businesses and traditional markets. To further incentivize the use of this local currency and boost its circulation, Busan City launched an event where residents who spend their high fuel price support funds via Dongbaekjeon are automatically entered into a drawing. As detailed in official announcements, spending a cumulative 150,000 won or more during the event period (from April 27 to July 31, 2026) triggers automatic entry, with prizes ranging from 10,000 won to a top prize of 50,000 won in additional Dongbaekjeon credits, funded by sponsors including Busan Bank and other card issuers. This structure aims to achieve two goals: put direct financial relief into residents’ hands and channel that spending specifically toward local merchants who accept the Dongbaekjeon.

Translating this concept to the Twin Cities context reveals interesting parallels and points of divergence. Minneapolis and St. Paul, like many major U.S. Cities, have seen periods of significant inflation, particularly impacting energy and transportation costs, which disproportionately affect lower and middle-income households. While the U.S. Lacks a direct equivalent to Busan’s municipally backed regional currency like the Dongbaekjeon, the Twin Cities area does have a robust ecosystem of locally focused financial tools and initiatives aimed at keeping wealth within the community. For instance, organizations like Consider Local First, which advocates for independent businesses in Minnesota, and the Minnesota Community Development Association (MCDA), which supports various local investment strategies, operate towards similar goals of strengthening local economic resilience. The concept of targeted financial relief is not foreign; various state and local programs have offered energy assistance, such as Minnesota’s Energy Assistance Program (EAP), which helps qualifying households pay heating bills—a direct response to the kind of cost pressure Busan’s program aims to alleviate.

The Busan initiative as well highlights a growing trend in municipal finance: leveraging behavioral economics and digital tools to achieve policy objectives. By tying the receipt of aid to specific spending behaviors (using Dongbaekjeon) and adding gamified incentives (the prize draw), the city aims to influence where money flows within its economy. This approach finds echoes in various U.S. Municipal experiments, such as targeted basic income pilots in cities like Stockton, California, or Jackson, Mississippi, which study the effects of unconditional cash, and in the growing use of “local first” marketing campaigns by chambers of commerce. Though, the Twin Cities’ approach tends to rely more on federal and state-level block grants and established non-profit networks for distributing aid, rather than creating bespoke municipal currencies or large-scale, city-funded incentive games tied directly to the spending of relief funds. The administrative infrastructure for something like Dongbaekjeon—requiring widespread merchant adoption, integrated payment systems, and citizen trust in a latest local tender—is significantly different from the existing U.S. Framework of Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards for SNAP or state-specific energy assistance vouchers.

Examining the potential second-order effects, Busan’s strategy could, if successful, strengthen the visibility and usage of its local currency, potentially making it a more habitual choice for residents even outside of specific aid programs. This mirrors discussions in U.S. Cities about the power of local purchasing habits; for example, campaigns encouraging residents to shift even a small percentage of their spending to independent bookstores, cafes, or hardware stores in neighborhoods like Northeast Minneapolis or along Grand Avenue in St. Paul can have a measurable cumulative impact on local business vitality. The Busan model suggests that pairing financial relief with intentional incentives for local spending could be a potent combination—a concept worth watching as U.S. Municipalities continue to grapple with affordability challenges and seek innovative ways to support both residents and their local commercial corridors simultaneously.

Given my background in urban economics and public policy analysis, if the principles behind Busan’s approach—linking household relief to strengthened local economic circuits—spark your interest in how similar goals are pursued here in the Twin Cities, here are three types of local professionals and organizations you might seek out to deepen your understanding or get involved:

Community Economic Development Specialists

Look for professionals affiliated with established local non-profits or city departments focused on inclusive growth. Key criteria include a demonstrable track record in designing or implementing programs that support small business ownership, particularly in BIPOC and immigrant communities, and experience navigating federal, state, and local funding streams like Community Development Block Grants (CDBGs) or state-specific job training funds. They often work on initiatives that aim to build local wealth retention, which aligns with the core goal of Busan’s Dongbaekjeon stimulus.

Local Independent Business Advocates

Seek out individuals or groups deeply embedded in specific neighborhood business alliances, such as those active in the Lake Street Council in Minneapolis or the West Side Business Association in St. Paul. Essential criteria are active participation in or leadership of “shop local” campaigns, a strong grasp of the unique challenges faced by brick-and-mortar retailers (like foot traffic, parking, and online competition), and established relationships with both city regulatory bodies and the businesses they represent. They are the grassroots voices translating municipal policy into tangible support for main streets.

Municipal Finance and Policy Analysts

These experts, often found within university public policy schools (like the Humphrey School at the University of Minnesota), city budget offices, or specialized non-partisan think tanks focused on Minnesota, should possess strong skills in analyzing the fiscal impact and equity outcomes of local economic programs. Look for those who publish accessible research on topics like municipal revenue sources, the effectiveness of various incentive structures, and comparative analyses of how different cities approach economic resilience—providing the data-driven context needed to evaluate innovations like Busan’s on their potential applicability or lessons for the Twin Cities context.

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