OKX Ventures buys 20% of Coinone to boost Korea crypto tech, security and compliance

OKX Ventures has agreed to buy and invest for a 20% stake in South Korea-licensed exchange Coinone, alongside Korea Investment & Securities (KIS), in a KRW 160 billion (about $106 million) deal. The transaction combines purchases of existing shares and newly issued shares, subject to regulatory approval. For Coinone traders, the key point is the ownership and control structure: Coinone founder and CEO Cha Myung-hoon keeps management control and remains the largest shareholder with 27.8%. Com2uS Holdings (and affiliates) holds 25.0%, while OKX Ventures and KIS each take 19.6%, making OKX Ventures Coinone’s third-largest shareholder. The investment is also a tech-and-compliance upgrade plan. Coinone plans to adopt OKX’s matching engine and related custody and wallet technology to improve execution speed, security, and service stability. Both firms emphasize stronger risk controls as South Korea tightens oversight under the Virtual Asset User Protection Act (effective in 2024), with further stablecoin and tokenized-securities legislation expected. Strategically, OKX gains a route into a more regulated Korea market without launching a new local exchange. OKX Ventures and KIS also plan to explore new digital financial products, potentially including STOs, stablecoin-related services, and tokenized finance. Trading takeaway: this is another institutional, infrastructure-focused step in South Korea’s regulated crypto market. Near-term impact may be sentiment-driven (less “spec” risk, more infrastructure confidence), while the longer-term effect depends on smooth regulatory approval and successful integration of OKX security and compliance standards—factors that can support liquidity and reduce operational risk.