OKX and KIS to Acquire Combined 39% Stake in Coinone

OKX Ventures and Korea Investment & Securities (KIS) have announced a strategic investment in the South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Coinone, with each firm committing 80 billion won—approximately $53 million—to acquire a 19.6% stake [2]. The deal, which remains subject to regulatory approval, represents a total capital injection of 160 billion won, or $106 million, into one of the country’s five major won-trading digital asset platforms [2, 4].

Key takeaways

• OKX Ventures and KIS will each hold a 19.6% stake, making them joint third-largest shareholders in Coinone [2, 4].
• The investment is structured through a mix of secondary share purchases and subscriptions for newly issued shares [2, 4].
• Coinone CEO Cha Myunghun will retain management control and remain the largest shareholder with a 27.8% stake [2, 4].
• The partnership aims to explore new business opportunities in stablecoins and security token offerings (STOs) [2, 4].

Strategic Expansion into Regulated Infrastructure

The investment marks a significant move by both a global crypto firm and a major domestic brokerage into South Korea’s evolving digital asset sector [2, 4]. While Coinone is a smaller player compared to market leaders like Upbit and Bithumb, which together account for nearly 96% of local trading volume, the exchange provides a regulated foundation for the investors to build upon [4]. By integrating KIS’s compliance expertise and institutional relationships with OKX’s global operational experience, the partners aim to reposition Coinone within a market that is increasingly shifting toward institutional safety and regulated product design [4].

The deal is particularly focused on the future of tokenized assets. Following recent amendments to South Korea’s Capital Markets Act, KIS has stated its intention to leverage this partnership to pursue stablecoin and security token offering (STO) businesses [4]. Beyond capital, OKX plans to share best practices regarding user protection, risk management, and security, while KIS will assist in areas such as anti-money laundering and suspicious transaction detection [4].

Why it matters

The South Korean crypto market is currently undergoing a period of intense consolidation and institutionalization [3, 4]. As the country moves toward a more formal digital asset framework, domestic financial groups are aggressively securing positions in local exchanges; for instance, Mirae Asset Consulting recently acquired a majority stake in Korbit, and Hana Financial Group has invested in the operator of Upbit [3].

For global firms like OKX, the Coinone deal provides a strategic entry point into a sophisticated market that has historically been difficult for offshore entities to access at scale [4]. While the investment is substantial, market observers note that the success of the venture will depend on how effectively the exchange can compete against the dominant incumbents in a highly concentrated environment [4]. The transaction is expected to close pending regulatory approval, at which point Com2uS Holdings and its affiliates will hold a 25% stake, remaining the second-largest shareholder behind CEO Cha Myunghun [2, 4].