Korea Investment & Securities and OKX Jointly Acquire 40% Stake in Coinone
Korea Investment & Securities will sign an agreement with OKX on the 29th to each acquire a 20% stake in the South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Coinone, totaling 40%.
The total acquisition amount is estimated to be between 500 billion to 600 billion KRW (approximately 332 million to 398 million USD), primarily through new share issuance, while the existing major shareholder's management rights will remain unchanged.
Through this acquisition, Korea Investment & Securities will advance its digital asset business, including token securities issuance and circulation, attracting corporate clients, and large-scale brokerage services.
Source: Public Information
ABAB AI Insight
Korea Investment & Securities has previously been actively investing in the digital asset sector. This joint acquisition of Coinone with OKX continues its strategy of quickly entering the crypto market through stakes in local licensed platforms, while OKX deepens its compliant operations in Korea through localized equity.
In terms of capital strategy, both parties will focus resources on token securities issuance, large-scale brokerage, and institutional client services, aiming to attract institutional funds into Korea and enhance platform trading volume, while building compliance advantages in a strict regulatory environment.
Similar to the collaboration models between traditional financial institutions and international crypto platforms in places like Singapore and Dubai, Korea is currently in a transitional phase of deep integration between traditional securities firms and global crypto exchanges.
Essentially, this represents a concentration of capital and regulatory changes: traditional brokerages upgrade their businesses by acquiring local crypto platforms, with the mechanism being a combination of regulatory permits and international technology, accelerating the shift of capital from traditional securities to comprehensive digital asset services, and promoting the evolution of Korea's crypto market from retail speculation to institutionalization and professionalization.
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