Korbit, Backed by Mirae Asset, Can It Challenge Upbit’s Dominance?

▲ Crypto (Cryptocurrency)

South Korea’s largest securities firm has announced the surprise acquisition of the country’s longest-running cryptocurrency exchange, signaling a major shift in the virtual asset market. Amid a bullish domestic stock market, the move is being interpreted as the first clear sign of substantial capital from traditional finance flowing into digital asset infrastructure.

According to DL News on February 15 (local time), Mirae Asset, which manages $418 billion in assets, has agreed to acquire a 92% stake in Korbit for $92 million. Pending approval from the Financial Services Commission, this would mark the first time a regulated financial institution in South Korea owns a cryptocurrency exchange as a subsidiary. To navigate regulatory requirements, Mirae Asset plans to purchase a 61% stake held by Nexon and a 31.5% stake held by SK Planet through its subsidiary, Mirae Asset Consulting.

Mirae Asset stated that the main objective of the acquisition is to secure future growth drivers based on digital assets. Industry insiders believe the deal is likely to lead to the development of various derivative products, including security tokens and cryptocurrency custody services. Following the news, Mirae Asset’s stock price surged more than 15% over the past five days and skyrocketed 226% over the past six months, reflecting strong market enthusiasm.

Meanwhile, although Korbit initially led the early Bitcoin (BTC) trading market, its market share has recently fallen to around 1%, far behind Upbit, which dominates with a 60%–70% share. However, backed by strong financial power after reporting $1.1 billion in net profit last year—up 72% year-over-year—Mirae Asset aims to turn the tide and plans to reinvest those profits into expanding its digital asset business.

The major acquisition comes as the domestic stock market enjoys a boom, with the KOSPI reaching historic highs. In contrast, the cryptocurrency market has been experiencing a deep downturn. As of late January, Upbit’s daily trading volume stood at $755 million, down more than 90% from its peak of $10 billion in July 2025. Experts noted that many investors have shifted away from the stagnant digital asset market to the more vibrant domestic equity market.

President Lee Jae-myung has also made KOSPI growth a top economic policy priority, strongly urging support for the domestic stock market over overseas stock investments or speculative trading. During a meeting last year with the heads of securities firms, including Mirae Asset, discussions focused on attracting liquidity into the domestic market and easing regulations on brokerages. Analysts believe this favorable political and regulatory environment provided strong backing for Mirae Asset’s decision to acquire Korbit.

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