Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo, right, poses with Dunamu Vice Chairman Kim Hyoung-nyon during a memorandum of understanding signing ceremony in Seoul, Friday.
The agreement includes Hana Bank’s acquisition of a 6.5 percent stake in Dunamu.
Courtesy of Hana Financial Group Hana Financial Group’s recent investment in Dunamu, the operator of Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, has fueled speculation that Upbit’s six-year banking partnership with Kbank could face new competition, industry officials said Monday.
Hana Bank, a key affiliate of the financial group, recently purchased a 6.5 percent stake in Dunamu from Kakao Investment for about 1 trillion won ($647 million), becoming the company’s fourth-largest shareholder.
The deal makes Hana Financial the first Korean financial holding company to take an ownership stake in a cryptocurrency exchange operator.
