‘Golden Time for Token Securities’ Securities Firms Eye OTC Trading Fees [Crypto Briefing]

[Financial News] Amendments to the Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act (FSCMA) and the Act on Electronic Registration of Stocks and Bonds, aimed at institutionalizing Security Token Offering (STO), passed a plenary session of the National Assembly on the 15th, officially bringing blockchain-based securities into the regulated financial system. The financial investment industry views the remaining year until the law takes effect in January 2027 as a golden time and is expected to craft strategies to preempt the token securities distribution market and secure stable revenue sources.
According to the financial authorities and industry on the 16th, the core of the amendments is the legal recognition of distributed ledgers as an official securities register and the clear separation of the issuance and distribution of token securities.
The amendments mainly introduce a new category of account management institutions for issuers and establish a new business category for OTC brokerage. In particular, the aspect drawing the most attention from the securities industry is the newly created ‘OTC brokerage business.’ Until now, non-standardized securities such as fractional investment products had no distribution channels, but the revisions will open an over-the-counter market where multilateral negotiated trading is possible.
KB Securities Research Center analyzed, “Previously, due to the absence of distribution regulations for non-standardized securities, trading was in principle prohibited, but with the introduction of the OTC brokerage business, a variety of players, including securities firms and Financial Technology (FinTech) companies, will be able to operate over-the-counter (OTC) platforms.” The industry expects that large securities firms with strong capital and infrastructure will emerge as key players in this market and secure trading and arrangement fees.
As regulatory uncertainty has been resolved, major securities firms are also accelerating their moves. Their strategies largely fall into two categories: ‘global expansion’ and ‘strengthening retail dominance.’
Mirae Asset Securities Co., Ltd. is pursuing a global strategy centered on “Digital X,” established under its Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China subsidiary. Rather than remaining confined to domestic regulatory sandboxes, the firm is expected to build an integrated platform in financial hubs such as the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China that encompasses both virtual assets and traditional assets, thereby absorbing global liquidity. KIWOOM Securities Co., Ltd. is pursuing a strategy of migrating its existing retail customer base into the token securities market.
In addition, the recent easing trend in the Separation of Finance and Virtual Assets is expected to further widen the scope of securities firms’ activities. Yoodong Yoon, a researcher at NH Investment & Securities Co., Ltd., interpreted this by saying, “Issues such as the potential merger between NAVER Financial Corporation and Dunamu Inc., and speculation that Mirae Asset Financial Group is seeking to acquire the virtual asset exchange Korbit, are attempts by traditional financial institutions to strengthen their dominance in the virtual asset market.”
However, the outlook is not entirely rosy. An industry official pointed out, “In the short term, the biggest challenge will be discovering attractive underlying assets that can generate strong investor demand.” The official added that how quickly the currently art-focused underlying assets can be expanded to include high-quality real estate, vessels, and Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) will determine the success or failure of the early market.

elikim@fnnews.com Kim Mi-hee Reporter