Koramco Signs Business Agreement with Piperpublic for Mobile Investment Platform

Koramco Asset Trust announced on the 19th that it has formed a partnership with fintech startup Piperpublic and is preparing to launch a mega REIT investment service utilizing a mobile investment platform.

Most large REITs, except for some listed REITs, have been established in private forms, with major institutional investors such as pension funds and mutual aid associations primarily participating. Koramco is reviewing ways to allow individuals to participate in large REITs through a business agreement with Piperpublic.

Piperpublic has developed its own mobile investment platform called RealBuy. RealBuy provides users with big data-based investment indicators, and users can review this data and then invest in REITs through the platform. Koramco provides investment opportunities on the platform.

Small funds from individual investors gather through the platform to form a single fund of funds, which is then invested in the mega REIT established by Koramco.

Koramco is the leading real estate finance company in this field, holding a 20% market share in the domestic private REIT market, which amounts to about 78 trillion KRW. Recently, it purchased ‘Arc Place’ in Yeoksam-dong for approximately 790 billion KRW. It is preparing to sell ‘The Asset Gangnam,’ known as the Samsung C&T Seocho Office Building. The sale price is expected to exceed 1 trillion KRW. If RealBuy is commercialized, it will open the door for individual investors to invest in mega assets with only small amounts.

A Koramco Asset Trust official said, "Koramco was the first to introduce the REIT system in Korea and led the popularization of listed REITs," adding, "We will once again contribute to expanding the REIT base through the new attempt of a mobile investment platform."

Piperpublic CEO Ho-seung Lee explained, "We are currently in discussions with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport regarding the ‘activation of a public REIT-based platform’," and "We plan to form a consortium of multiple REIT AMCs and real estate investment platforms." He added, "We also plan to resolve necessary financial regulations through an application for innovative financial services."