South Korea's Mirae Asset Financial Group, a major financial institution, is acquiring a controlling stake in cryptocurrency exchange Korbit in a deal valued at 133.5 billion won ($92.27 million). According to a regulatory disclosure, Mirae Asset Consulting, the group's advisory arm, will purchase 26.9 million shares, giving it a 92.06% majority stake upon completion.
The shares were acquired primarily from existing major shareholders, including NXC—the holding company of gaming giant Nexon—and subsidiaries of SK Group. SK Planet, an IoT-focused affiliate of SK Group, separately disclosed it sold 9.22 million shares for 45.7 billion won ($31.6 million). The transaction remains subject to regulatory approval.
Mirae Asset stated the purpose of the acquisition is to “secure future growth momentum based on digital assets.” The move aligns with the group’s “Mirae Asset 3.0” strategy, which focuses on integrating digital assets into traditional financial services. This comes as South Korea prepares for the introduction of tokenized securities following recent legislative approval, potentially giving Mirae Asset an operational platform for token issuance, custody, and trading.
Korbit ranks as South Korea’s fourth-largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, processing roughly $95 million in trades over the past 24 hours. This compares to market leader Upbit, which recorded about $1.8 billion. The acquisition reflects a broader trend of consolidation between traditional finance and crypto in South Korea, following Naver's financial arm acquiring Dunamu, the parent company of Upbit, in late 2025.
However, regulatory risk looms. South Korean authorities are preparing the Digital Asset Basic Act, which is expected to include strict caps on ownership stakes for major shareholders of cryptocurrency exchanges. If enacted as proposed, the rules could require Mirae Asset to divest part of its newly acquired 92% stake in Korbit, creating uncertainty around the long-term ownership structure.
