SK Telecom Subsidiary Invests $75M in Korbit Exchange

SK Square, an investment subsidiary of SK Telecom, has just invested 90 billion won (around $75 million) into South Korean crypto exchange Korbit, The Korea Herald reported on 29 November.

According to the publication, SK Square was able to acquire a 35% stake in the company with its investment, making it the second largest shareholder after South Korean investment giant NXC, the owner of video game company Nexon. The investment subsidiary of SK Telecom stated that it “believes its value of net assets could grow just by holding shares of Korbit”, considering the trading volumes of the exchange.

Korbit is one of the big four cryptocurrency exchanges in South Korea that offer won-based trading — alongside Bithumb, Upbit, and Coinone — and was the first to launch a non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace in the region. The newly acquired funds will help Korbit upgrade its services, and create a safer environment for investors to trade crypto assets.

SK Square, on the other hand, will join hands with Korbit to explore new partnership opportunities within ifland — the metaverse platform operated by SK Telecom — such as an integration between the two platforms, shared virtual environments, and promotion of crypto niches like NFTs.

While this is SK Square’s first foray into the crypto scene since its establishment in August, it is not the last. On the same day the company also revealed it had also invested 8 billion won (around $7 million) into Onmind — acquiring a 40% stake in the company — which is a Kakako-based 3D avatar production studio. The chief investment officer of SK Square, Yoon Poong-young, said in a statement:

“SK Square will continue to invest in ICT areas that will lead future innovation, such as blockchain and metaverse, to become an attractive investment company.”