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Buying Dunamu shares to seek synergy with Naver… IT and foreign companies also join
Securities firms likely to attempt a Korean version of 'Robinhood'… 'Financial-Virtual Asset Separation' rendered meaningless
Ahead of the introduction of Korean Won stablecoins, an all-out scramble for stakes in Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) is intensifying.
Not only domestic commercial banks, securities firms, and credit card companies, but also IT companies and foreign firms are all eyeing exchange stakes, anticipating a major shift in the industry landscape.
Hana Financial Group fired the starting gun.
On the 15th, Hana Bank made a surprise announcement that it would acquire a 6.55% stake in Dunamu, the operator of virtual asset exchange Upbit, held by Kakao Investment, for 1.0033 trillion won.
1 trillion won is an enormous amount, enough to acquire an entire medium-to-large financial affiliate, indicating a bold bet on the future of the company.
Following this, affiliates of Samsung Group and Hanwha Group joined the fray, attracting attention.
Samsung Securities[016360], Samsung SDS, and Samsung Card[029780] announced on the 28th the acquisition of a 4.0% stake in Dunamu held by Kakao Investment, while Hanwha Investment & Securities[003530] disclosed on the 20th an additional acquisition of a 3.90% stake.
They appear to have invested with Dunamu's ongoing pursuit of a merger with Naver Financial, a Naver subsidiary, through a comprehensive stock exchange, in mind.
This is because acquiring a stake in Dunamu allows them to secure competitiveness in the virtual asset business and simultaneously aim for "killing two birds with one stone" by seeking business synergy with Naver.
In particular, the simultaneous acquisition of Dunamu shares by three Samsung Group affiliates is interpreted as a result of Samsung Securities' interest in tokenized securities, Samsung SDS's interest in infrastructure, and Samsung Card's interest in stablecoin distribution.
Furthermore, securities firms are also reportedly considering launching platforms that can integrate the trading of listed stocks and virtual assets, similar to the US online trading platform 'Robinhood'.
An official from the securities industry said on the 31st, "Investing in exchange stakes is the best investment for entering new markets and preparing for new businesses," adding, "The fact that securities firms, which have secured cash due to the recent stock market boom, don't have many immediate places to invest also likely played a role."
The atmosphere for investing in other Korean Won virtual asset exchanges is also heating up, not just for Dunamu, the industry leader.
Mirae Asset Consulting, an affiliate of Mirae Asset Group, decided in February to acquire a 92.06% stake in virtual asset exchange Korbit for 133.5 billion won, and is currently awaiting the results of the Fair Trade Commission's corporate merger review.
Korea Investment & Securities and OKX Ventures also signed an agreement on the 29th to acquire 20% each of some existing shares and new shares held by Coinone's largest shareholder, CEO Cha Myung-hoon, and second-largest shareholder, Com2uS Holdings[063080].
OKX Ventures is the investment arm of global virtual asset exchange OKX, and this acquisition of a stake in a Korean Won exchange by a major overseas exchange is the second such instance, following Binance's acquisition of a stake in Streami (Gopax).
Beyond Hana Financial, which partnered with Dunamu, KB, Shinhan, Woori, and NH Nonghyup Financial Groups are also reportedly exploring the possibility of forming consortia or collaborations among their key banking affiliates behind the scenes.
As major financial institutions competitively invest in virtual asset exchanges, some argue that the principle of 'Geumga-bunri' (separation of finance and virtual assets) has effectively become meaningless.
Aside from Naver, which Dunamu has already secured, Kakao[035720] and Toss are being mentioned as potential collaboration partners for securing stakes in virtual asset exchanges, excluding financial companies.
An official from the virtual asset industry said, "There seems to be a sense of crisis now, 'If we don't enter now, we might miss the market'," adding, "I understand that many companies, besides those known, are considering investing in exchange stakes."
However, it remains uncertain when the discussions on the 'Digital Asset Framework Act', which is the second phase of virtual asset legislation and is known to include stablecoin-related provisions, will conclude.
At the same time, there are also opinions that the situation is fluid because the results of the Fair Trade Commission's corporate merger reviews for Dunamu and Naver Financial, and Mirae Asset Consulting and Korbit, are difficult to guarantee.
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