Samsung Units To Buy $408M Stake In Upbit Operator Dunamu: Report

Samsung Securities, Samsung SDS and Samsung Card will acquire a combined 4% stake in Dunamu, the operator of South Korean crypto exchange Upbit, in a deal that expands Samsung affiliates’ exposure to the country’s digital asset market, local media reported.

The three Samsung affiliates held board meetings on Thursday and approved the purchase of 1.39 million Dunamu shares held by Kakao affiliates for 612.8 billion won ($408 million), according to local reports from Yonhap News Agency and ZDNet Korea. Samsung Securities will acquire a 2% stake, while Samsung SDS and Samsung Card will each acquire 1%. 

The investment extends Samsung’s digital asset push weeks after Samsung SDS reportedly won a contract to build South Korea’s blockchain-based securities platform, placing Samsung affiliates across both regulated tokenized securities infrastructure and private-sector crypto exchange and payment rails. 

The deal also follows another major Dunamu investment by a South Korean financial group. On May 15, Hana Financial Group said that it would acquire a 6.55% stake in Dunamu from Kakao Investment for more than $668 million, making it the Upbit operator’s fourth-largest shareholder.

Samsung Securities plans to cooperate with Dunamu on tokenized securities issuance and distribution, as well as digital asset services, while Samsung SDS plans to combine its IT, artificial intelligence, cloud, security and data capabilities with Dunamu’s blockchain operations experience, according to the reports. 

Samsung Card is expected to explore digital asset payment use cases with Dunamu, including through Samsung Financial Networks’ integrated app Monimo, as South Korea prepares rules for won-denominated stablecoins and tokenized securities. 

Cointelegraph reached out to Samsung and Dunamu for more information, but did not receive a response before publication. 

Samsung builds digital asset ties ahead of regulatory frameworks 

Samsung’s Dunamu investment follows another recent blockchain infrastructure move by the group. Earlier in May, Samsung SDS reportedly won a contract to build and operate the Korea Securities Depository’s blockchain-based securities platform, which is expected to support South Korea’s incoming framework for tokenized securities. 

South Korea is preparing to formalize its tokenized securities framework after lawmakers passed amendments to the Electronic Registration Act and the Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act in January. The FSC said the changes legally recognize blockchain-based distributed ledgers as securities registries, placing KSD at the center of the market’s infrastructure. 

The framework is scheduled to take effect on Feb. 4, 2027, after updates to subordinate rules and the setup of related infrastructure. 

Related: Naver-Dunamu filing sets IPO committee, listing timeline for fintech group

According to the local reports, Samsung Card is considering digital asset payment use cases with Dunamu through Samsung Financial Networks’ integrated app Monimo, though the companies have not announced a stablecoin or payment product.

South Korea’s Financial Services Commission said in January that it was continuing discussions with related agencies on the country’s second-phase virtual asset legislation, while cautioning that key details, including stablecoin issuer structures, had not been finalized. 

Magazine: 50K investors fight Korean crypto tax, Singapore cancels Bsquared: Asia Express