Mirae Asset Secures Approval for $88.5 Billion Korbit Acquisition

South Korea's Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) has cleared Mirae Asset Consulting's acquisition of Korbit, allowing the first takeover of a domestic won-based digital asset exchange by an affiliate of a major financial group.

Under the deal, Mirae Asset Consulting will acquire a 92% stake in Korbit for approximately 133.4 billion won ($88.5 billion).

The KFTC determined that the acquisition would not substantially reduce competition because of Korbit's relatively small market position.

Korbit held just 0.5% of South Korea's crypto trading volume last year, and the regulator said the exchange's limited scale and the market's existing concentration mean the transaction is unlikely to create anti-competitive effects.