Karla Barker 
Park Hyeon-joo, chairman of Mirae Asset Group, has questioned why people invest in Bitcoin. Speaking at a meeting with DigitalX employees in Seoul, he said few have made money from the cryptocurrency and many have suffered heavy losses. He also criticized South Korean exchange listing practices, calling them fraudulent.
His remarks come amid sharp price swings in Bitcoin. Some investors have gained, but many who bought near peaks have seen serious losses. Park, who also serves as the group’s global strategist, said he does not understand why people borrow money to buy digital assets. He stressed that such speculation should not be applied to stocks or other assets.
A Skeptical View on Bitcoin
Park’s stance reflects a broader caution among traditional financial leaders. They often warn about volatility and the lack of intrinsic value in crypto. He said almost no one has made money from Bitcoin.
DigitalX and the Move Toward Tokenized Assets
During the meeting, Park discussed plans for DigitalX, the group’s digital asset subsidiary. If it becomes profitable, the company expects to raise between 200 billion and 300 billion won in the first quarter of next year, roughly $149.8 million to $224.7 million. The funds would come from strategic investors. Depending on market conditions, there may also be a third-party allotment for customers working with DigitalX.
Park also noted that Mirae Asset holds 1,500 trillion won in assets under custody. He said these assets will be digitized over time. He expressed confidence that DigitalX could reach profitability by 2027 with aggressive capital increases and global investments.
He pointed to security token offerings, or STOs, as a major opportunity. Park wants DigitalX to move beyond conventional crypto trading and become an onchain finance platform spanning real-world assets and STOs.
His vision aligns with a growing trend of tokenizing traditional assets. But he was cautious about cross-border decentralized finance. Park argued that countries like South Korea, which value monetary policy and currency sovereignty, would not allow DeFi that weakens those powers.
Exchange Listing Practices Under Fire
Park was especially critical of exchanges. He said hundreds of altcoins listed only on South Korean exchanges were added without due care. From his perspective, that amounted to fraud. He said it is not a success when a company earns fees from coins that leave most customers with losses. He described charging such fees while knowing the situation was criminal behavior.
These comments echo what regulators and industry observers have said about weak listing standards. South Korea has been tightening rules around virtual assets. Park’s remarks may increase pressure on exchanges.
Park leads one of South Korea’s biggest financial groups. His focus on STOs and real-world assets points to a strategic direction for DigitalX. For investors, his warnings are a reminder that crypto trading carries serious risks. For the industry, his comments highlight the need for transparency and investor protection.