Hanwha Investment to Buy $432 Million More of Dunamu, Raise Stake to 9.84%

Hanwha Investment & Securities will invest about $432 million more in Dunamu, the operator of South Korea’s largest digital-asset exchange Upbit, raising its stake to 9.84%.

In a regulatory filing on May 20, the company said its board approved the cash purchase of 1,361,050 existing Dunamu shares from Kakao Investment for about 597.8 billion won, or roughly $432 million. Hanwha Investment & Securities said the acquisition is intended to strengthen its digital-finance competitiveness and secure business synergies.

Once the deal closes, Hanwha Investment & Securities will hold 3,430,500 Dunamu shares in total. Its stake will increase from 5.94% to 9.84%.

The company said the additional investment in Dunamu will help strengthen its digital-asset related businesses.

Separately, Hana Financial Group recently decided to acquire 2,284,000 Dunamu shares held by Kakao Investment for about 1 trillion won, or roughly $724 million.