Mirae Asset Group is stepping up its push into digital assets, positioning the sector as a core pillar of its long-term growth strategy. Park Hyeon-joo, chairman and global strategy officer of Mirae Asset Group, said the group aims to build a digital asset business worth 150 trillion won ($108 billion) by leveraging its roughly 1,500 trillion won in customer assets.
At the center of the strategy is Digital X, the operator of Korbit, one of South Korea’s major cryptocurrency exchanges. Park outlined the group’s vision at an employee event for Digital X held at the Four Seasons Hotel Seoul in Gwanghwamun on Aug. 26.
The meeting marked Park’s first direct engagement with Digital X employees since Mirae Asset Group acquired management control of the company. He described Digital X as a key pillar of the group’s broader “Mirae Asset 3.0” strategy, signaling a push beyond its traditional securities and asset management businesses into blockchain-based finance and digital assets.
Mirae Asset plans to expand Digital X’s business around four major areas: cryptocurrencies, stablecoins, real-world assets (RWA) and security token offerings (STOs).
The group also plans to explore the tokenization of physical assets such as gold, silver and electricity. The strategy is aimed at connecting traditional financial assets with blockchain technology and creating new investment products and services.
Park also emphasized the development of an “on-chain finance” ecosystem. Mirae Asset intends to develop financial products and services using digital assets while making principal investments to strengthen its competitive position in the emerging market.
The strategy suggests that Mirae Asset views Digital X as more than a cryptocurrency exchange. The company is expected to serve as a bridge between the group’s existing financial businesses and the rapidly developing digital asset ecosystem.
Capital expansion is also being considered as the business grows. Digital X has already decided on a 50 billion won third-party allotment capital increase, with Mirae Asset Consulting expected to subscribe for the newly issued shares. Park indicated that the group could consider an additional capital increase of 200 billion to 300 billion won in the first quarter of next year, depending on the company’s performance.
Mirae Asset is targeting a return to profitability for the digital asset business next year. The group plans to strengthen Digital X’s financial base while expanding its product lineup and customer base.
At the same time, Park cautioned against excessive speculation in digital assets. He expressed concern about so-called “crypto debt investing,” in which investors borrow money to buy cryptocurrencies. Rather than encouraging concentrated bets on individual tokens, he said the financial industry should provide customers with opportunities to diversify across a broader range of assets.
Park also offered his views on South Korea’s stock market and corporate investment. He argued that recent market volatility was driven more by portfolio rebalancing by foreign hedge funds than by leveraged exchange-traded funds.
On shareholder returns, Park took a critical view of arguments that companies such as Samsung Electronics should prioritize higher dividends. He said companies should instead retain capital and invest aggressively in future growth when necessary, arguing that stronger investment can ultimately improve corporate competitiveness.
He also said the era of making money primarily through real estate should come to an end, suggesting that capital should increasingly move from property into financial markets. Such a shift, he argued, could create greater economic opportunities for younger generations.
Park expressed similar optimism about SpaceX, one of Mirae Asset’s overseas investments. He described the space company as a unique player that invested aggressively in data centers when graphics processing units were relatively inexpensive. He expects demand from global technology companies, including Google and Anthropic, to support the company’s growth and eventual profitability.
Mirae Asset’s digital asset strategy therefore represents more than an expansion into cryptocurrency trading. By combining its massive customer asset base with blockchain technology, the group is seeking to build a new financial ecosystem spanning crypto, stablecoins, RWAs and STOs.
Whether Digital X can evolve from a cryptocurrency exchange operator into a broader digital finance platform could become a critical test of Mirae Asset’s “3.0” strategy.
