South Korean securities firms are aggressively expanding their infrastructure to secure an early lead in the security token offering (STO) market, which is set to open early next year. As preparations for over-the-counter (OTC) trading platforms move into full swing alongside the development of proprietary issuance systems, the race for market share is accelerating.
Industry sources say major brokerages--including Korea Investment & Securities, Shinhan Securities, KB Securities, and Mirae Asset Securities--are rapidly building out their issuance and distribution networks ahead of the new regulatory framework.
Security tokens leverage distributed ledger technology (DLT), such as blockchain, to digitize and trade fractional interests in real-world assets (RWAs)--including real estate, fine art, music copyrights, intellectual property (IP), and private equity--that have traditionally been difficult to liquidate in conventional capital markets. Financial regulators are currently running a joint public-private STO task force and plan to announce detailed regulatory guidelines in July. The revised Electronic Securities Act and Capital Markets Act, which together establish the legal foundation for STO adoption, are scheduled to take effect on February 4, 2025.
This domestic push mirrors explosive global growth projections. Citigroup's “Tokenization 2030: Wall Street On-Chain” report forecasts that the global tokenized asset market will surge to $5.5 trillion by 2030, noting that tokenization has moved beyond crypto-industry experimentation and is being integrated into traditional financial infrastructure. Major market institutions, including the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), and Nasdaq, have already begun incorporating tokenization into their issuance, trading, and settlement frameworks.
In South Korea, competition has intensified as operators prepare to launch dedicated OTC venues for fractional investments. Once preliminarily approved entities such as KDX and the NXT Consortium secure final regulatory authorization and open their distribution channels, the battle between brokerages and fractional investment platforms to interlink systems and secure attractive underlying assets is expected to enter a new phase.
Korea Investment & Securities is pursuing a dual strategy: building its own STO issuance platform while partnering with digital asset exchanges. The firm recently issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) to major technology vendors for an integrated system capable of handling both security tokens and traditional structured securities, such as bonds and money market funds (MMFs). At the same time, it is expanding its digital asset footprint through partnerships with Coinone, OKX, and Com2uS Holdings. These initiatives include plans to link Coinone's app with Korea Investment & Securities' own mobile trading system (MTS).
Meanwhile, Shinhan Securities has been developing distributed ledger infrastructure through “Project PULSE” since it was selected as a financial sandbox operator. The company is also participating in an OTC exchange consortium for fractional investments to prepare for secondary market distribution. KB Securities is focusing on an end-to-end platform that connects issuance and distribution, and is exploring digital asset infrastructure built on the Canton Network--a global financial blockchain ecosystem--through collaboration with the Canton Foundation and Wavebridge.
Separately, Mirae Asset Securities is testing the waters of asset tokenization by moving first in overseas markets. In January, the firm became the first South Korean financial institution to issue digital bonds in Hong Kong, piloting blockchain-based issuance and settlement mechanics. Its Hong Kong subsidiary has also secured a digital-asset retail license, enabling local investors to trade tokenization-based products alongside traditional securities.45 Mirae Asset aims to build a unified investment platform that offers equities, bonds and digital assets under one roof, and is actively participating in a tokenization working group led by U.S. clearinghouse DTCC.
“The true value of tokenization extends far beyond mere cost reduction,” an industry insider noted. “The real breakthrough lies in full automation--allowing everything from securities issuance and trading to dividend and interest payments, investor rights management and compliance checks to be handled automatically by the technology.”
