Daishin acquires controlling stake in Korean real estate securities exchange

By Lee Min-hyung

Daishin Securities headquarters in Seoul / Yonhap

Daishin Financial Group has acquired a controlling stake in a Seoul-based real estate securities trading platform, as part of its first step for business expansion into security tokens transactions.

The financial group claimed a 90-percent stake in Kasa and the latter's management right, Wednesday, with a view to generating synergy with its conventional financial businesses, the company said.

The decision came about a month after Korea's financial authority approved the issuance and distribution of security tokens earlier last month. The security token refers to a kind of cryptocurrency for the trading of fractions of assets, such as real estate and art.

“Daishin's ability in sorting out blue chip property will create synergy with Kasa's platform competitiveness,” an official from Daishin said. “We will continue seeking new growth engines through the acquisition of Kasa.”

Daishin will advance these new forms of investment to its customers following the deal. In particular, the company is set to provide investors with opportunities to invest in commercial real estate indirectly through fractional investments. Daishin is now updating the mobile trading system for its users to access securities transactions.

Kasa is a securities trading platform focused on commercial real estate. Investors can make fractional transactions of commercial property by using the platform. The company was designated as an innovative financial service operator in 2019 by the Financial Services Commission. As of Wednesday, the app's total number of downloads reached 370,000. It has also secured 170,000 users.

More securities firms are also expected to seek new growth areas within security token transactions amid toughening rivalry in the conventional stock market ― even if securities token transactions will not guarantee immediate returns due to the infancy of the financial instrument.