PANews June 29 news, according to ChosunBiz, South Korean securities firm Kiwoom Securities is pushing to acquire a stake in Bithumb, the country’s second-largest virtual asset exchange. The two sides are discussing a third-party allotment capital increase, with the specific shareholding ratio and investment scale still being coordinated. Major securities firms such as Samsung, Mirae Asset Securities, and Korea Investment & Securities have already entered the virtual asset exchange space, and Kiwoom’s move marks another large brokerage joining the competition.

Analysts believe that the major shareholder equity limit in the second phase of South Korea’s virtual asset legislation may be driving this transaction — the Financial Services Commission is discussing capping the exchange’s largest shareholder’s stake at 20% in principle (no more than 34% in exceptional cases), while Bithumb’s largest shareholder, Bithumb Holdings, holds 73.56%. If the rule is implemented, it would need to shed more than 50 percentage points. Additionally, Vidente (a shareholder of Bithumb Holdings), which faces delisting risk, is seeking to sell its stake, and the entry of an external strategic investor will further dilute the influence of Vidente’s remaining equity.