OKX Ventures buys $53 million stake in Korea's Coinone exchange

OKX Ventures, the investment arm of crypto exchange OKX, will invest KRW 80 billion ($53 million) for a 19.6% stake in South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Coinone, the companies announced Friday, marking one of the largest recent investments by a global crypto firm into Korea's digital asset sector.

Korea Investment & Securities (KIS), one of South Korea's largest brokerages, will make an identical KRW 80 billion investment and also hold a 19.6% stake upon completion of the transaction, which remains subject to regulatory approval.

The combined KRW 160 billion ($106 million) deal will be structured through a mix of secondary share purchases from existing shareholders and subscriptions for newly issued shares, according to a company statement.

Following the investment, Coinone CEO Cha Myunghun is expected to remain the exchange's largest shareholder with a 27.8% stake and retain management control. Com2uS Holdings and its affiliates will hold 25%, while OKX Ventures and KIS will become joint third-largest shareholders.

The deal formalizes discussions first reported by Yonhap earlier this month, which said OKX and KIS were considering acquiring roughly 20% stakes in Coinone.