[Featured Stock] Woori Technology Investment, Upbit Cryptocurrency Exchange's First Report... Valuation Gains Surpass Market Cap

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyungsoo Park] Woori Technology Investment is showing strong performance. The news that the cryptocurrency exchange Upbit has submitted a virtual asset operator registration to the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) appears to have influenced the stock price. Dunamu was the first to submit the registration after the introduction of the virtual asset operator registration system. According to related laws, the approval or rejection of the registration will be notified within three months.

As of 1:36 PM on the 23rd, Woori Technology Investment is trading at 8,420 KRW, up 17.27% from the previous day.

According to the virtual asset operator registration status disclosed by the FIU, Dunamu submitted the virtual asset operator registration form on the 20th. Dunamu’s registration was made in accordance with the amended Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information (the amended Specified Financial Transaction Act). The amended Specified Financial Transaction Act, which has been in effect since March, imposes anti-money laundering obligations on virtual asset operators and introduces a registration system for virtual asset operators to manage and supervise them.

To register as a virtual asset operator, one must meet stringent requirements such as ▲obtaining Information Security Management System (ISMS) certification ▲opening a bank real-name verified deposit and withdrawal account (exceptions apply if there is no exchange of virtual assets and money) ▲ensuring that the representative and executives have no history of violating financial-related laws.

With this registration, Dunamu has secured a 'bank confirmation letter' from K Bank, the bank that provides the existing real-name verified account. Financial authorities have required the four companies holding existing bank real-name verified accounts (Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, and Korbit) to obtain and submit confirmation letters after bank due diligence for registration. While banks are conducting more thorough reviews to reduce anti-money laundering risks, causing delays in virtual asset operator registration submissions, Upbit has submitted the first registration.

With Upbit being the first to register as an operator, other exchanges inevitably become more anxious. The extension of bank real-name accounts for these exchanges is currently uncertain, so it is unclear whether any other exchanges will submit registrations within a few days among all exchanges.

According to electronic disclosures by the Financial Supervisory Service and Securities Plus Unlisted, Woori Technology Investment recorded an estimated gain of about 790 billion KRW in the first half of this year solely from its shares in Dunamu. The market price of the unlisted shares traded in the over-the-counter market surged approximately 140 times compared to the acquisition cost of 5.6 billion KRW. Dunamu’s existing shares are trading at 315,000 KRW. Woori Technology Investment reflected the value of its Dunamu stake at 130.1 billion KRW in its semi-annual report. Although Upbit’s trading volume has surged this year, it appears that immediately reflecting the over-the-counter trading price was deemed unreasonable.