Mirae Asset aims for a $109 billion digital-asset empire, with Digital X at the center Mirae Asset has unveiled an ambitious plan to build a 150 trillion won (about $109 billion) digital-asset business spanning cryptocurrencies, stablecoins, real-world assets (RWA) and tokenized securities, The Korea Times reports. Founder and chairman Park Hyeon-joo presented the strategy to employees of Digital X (the exchange formerly known as Korbit) in Seoul, saying the group wants the platform to become “a core pillar of ‘Mirae Asset 3.0.’” What Mirae Asset is targeting - A 150 trillion won digital-asset business built around four pillars: cryptocurrency trading, stablecoins, tokenized real-world assets (examples cited include gold, silver and electricity) and security token offerings (STOs). - The group will use its roughly 1,500 trillion won in client assets as the foundation for a digital-asset operation equal to about 10% of that pool. - Park said the business should turn profitable by 2027, though Mirae Asset has not given a timetable for reaching the full 150 trillion won target or a breakdown of how that value will be split among exchange assets, stablecoins, tokenized products and other services. Digital X: the operational hub Digital X — rebranded after Mirae Asset’s takeover of Korbit — will be the main operating base for the strategy. Korbit, founded in 2013 as South Korea’s first crypto exchange, has struggled to capture market share: it controlled roughly 0.5% of Korea’s crypto trading market in 2025, per the country’s Fair Trade Commission, far behind leaders like Upbit and Bithumb. Mirae Asset Consulting completed acquisition of 97.15% of Korbit in July, paying a total of 141.4 billion won to previous owners. South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission cleared the deal on July 9, noting the exchange’s small domestic market share. After the takeover and rebrand, Park framed the new name as a bridge between traditional finance and digital assets; trading, deposits, withdrawals and custody continued without interruption. Capital injection and current finances To shore up Digital X’s balance sheet, the exchange’s board approved a 50 billion won capital injection on Aug. 12 via the issuance of 10,078,614 common shares (priced at 4,961 won each). Mirae Asset Consulting was slated to receive all newly issued shares through a third-party allotment, with payment scheduled for Aug. 27. Unlike the earlier share purchase payments to sellers, this 50 billion won flows into Digital X to strengthen finances and cover management funding needs. The exchange’s numbers remain modest: Korbit reported about 9.8 billion won in operating revenue for 2025 but an operating loss of 15.4 billion won. Mirae Asset has not provided a detailed breakdown of how the new funds will be allocated across exchange operations, compliance, tokenization product development or other areas. Regulatory context: tokenization moves onshore Mirae Asset’s push comes as South Korea is setting out a legal framework for tokenized securities. Amendments to the Electronic Securities Act and Capital Markets Act, passed on Jan. 15, recognize blockchain-based distributed ledgers as a valid securities registry; the laws are slated to take effect on Feb. 4, 2027. Issuers will still need to meet registration and disclosure requirements through the Korea Securities Depository, and licensed intermediaries will manage distribution under the existing capital markets framework. Regulators are preparing supporting rules and infrastructure for issuance, distribution and over-the-counter trading. An August report on corporate crypto access indicated about 3,500 listed companies and professional investors are being prepared to use real-name accounts tied to domestic exchanges (financial companies were excluded and access is being phased in via controlled pilots). South Korean firms have effectively been unable to trade on local exchanges since 2017 because banks did not provide the corporate real-name accounts required for on‑exchange activity. Unanswered questions and cross-border limits Mirae Asset has not detailed which assets it will tokenize first, who will hold the underlying gold or silver, how electricity-linked tokens would be structured, or whether products will be limited to South Korean investors. For U.S. investors, any offer of Mirae Asset’s tokenized securities would need to comply with U.S. securities, broker-dealer and disclosure laws. U.S. regulators have repeatedly warned that putting securities on-chain does not remove legal obligations: the SEC has distinguished between issuer-sponsored tokens and third-party token structures, noting differences in ownership, contractual exposure and third-party risks. SEC Commissioner Mark Uyeda emphasized that issuance, custody and trading of tokenized securities remain subject to securities regulation. Short-term growth tactics To stimulate trading activity while tokenized products are developed, Digital X has cut fees: trading fees for every won-denominated asset were removed, with the zero-fee program scheduled to remain in place through Aug. 24, 2027. Why it matters If Mirae Asset can successfully combine its massive client asset base, capital support and compliance expertise with Digital X’s retail infrastructure, it could accelerate tokenization adoption in South Korea and create a new pipeline for real-world asset products. But the scale of the 150 trillion won target, limited current market share, ongoing losses at the exchange and unresolved product, custody and regulatory details mean execution risk is significant. Watch for further disclosures on token designs, custody arrangements, issuance roadmaps and how much of Mirae Asset’s client assets will be mobilized into the digital-asset strategy. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news