November 27, 2024

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A commercial for Mirae Asset Global Investments' ETF subsidiary, Global X, displayed on Nasdaq billboard (Mirae Asset Securities)

Mirae Asset Global Investments has continued to expand its presence in global markets. Of its total assets under management at 370 trillion won ($265 billion), almost 40 percent are now managed overseas.

When Mirae Asset first ventured into overseas markets back in 2003, it was met with considerable skepticism. Critics doubted whether the company could compete with established giants such as Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch.

However, Mirae Asset Founder Park Hyeon-joo recognized the long-term potential of global expansion. Over two decades later, it is now Korea’s leading global financial company and manages assets in 16 regions, including the United States, Vietnam, Brazil and the United Arab Emirates.

Exchange-traded funds in markets such as the US, Canada and Hong Kong have been key drivers of Mirae Asset’s international growth. The company has managed over 600 global ETFs with a combined net worth of 187 trillion won, surpassing the total domestic ETF market valued at approximately 162 trillion won.

Since launching the Tiger ETF in 2006, Mirae Asset has continued to diversify its offerings, including the Tiger Nasdaq 100 ETF, which tracks the Nasdaq US benchmark index. Recently, the company has also led thematic ETF innovations, such as ChatGPT-related, STRIPS-focused and monthly dividend ETF series.

Mirae Asset has also worked on mergers and acquisitions since 2011. The company has acquired a few promising ETF management firms abroad, including Horizons ETFs in Canada, Global X in the US and ETF Securities in Australia. The acquisition marked South Korea’s first instance of buying a foreign ETF manager using overseas profits. Last year, it also acquired the Australian robo-advisor Stockspot, with plans to enter the market for finance integrated with AI-based services.

"Since becoming the first Korean asset manager to enter foreign markets, we have consistently strived to establish ourselves as the nation’s leading global financial company,” said a company official. “We will continue to identify blue-chip assets and offer competitive financial products.”

By Park Min-ha (en23mp@heraldcorp.com)