Mirae Asset seeks to buy India’s 9th-largest brokerage Sharekhan

South Korea’s leading asset manager Mirae Asset Financial Group aims to enhance its presence in India by acquiring Sharekhan, the Southeast Asian country’s ninth-largest brokerage firm.

Bidders for Sharekhan have recently been shortlisted and Mirae Asset is one of them, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday. The Korean asset manager has begun due diligence on the Indian brokerage firm, they said.

The select bidders are required to make final bids by October and the preferred buyer will be chosen two to three weeks later.

The value of Sharekhan Securities isn’t known, but any acquisition attempt would cost around 25 billion Indian rupees ($302 million), sources said.

Mirae Asset officials declined to confirm its interest in Sharekhan.

Established in 2000, Sharekhan is a traditional brokerage house with a business focus on stock trading. It was acquired by French investment banking group BNP Paribas in 2016.

With equity capital of $210 million, Sharekhan has about 3,600 employees.

TOP ASIAN MARKET POST-CHINA

Through the acquisition of Sharekhan, Mirae Asset aims to strengthen its presence in India’s retail brokerage segment, industry sources said.

Mirae Asset Securities Co. established its India operations in 2018 – Korea’s first brokerage to do so in the country. There, the company is expanding its services online by offering digital trading systems.

Its affiliate Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. set up a local corporation in Mumbai in 2006.

With the launch of its first investment fund in India in 2008, Mirae Asset Global Investments has since grown to become the country’s ninth-largest asset manager.

In 2019, Mirae Asset Global Investments India transformed into a holding company to take charge of financial services in the country and in other parts of Asia.

Last year, the Indian corporation established a Dubai office, becoming Korea’s first asset manager to enter the Middle East.

PARK HYEON JOO’S LEADERSHIP

Park Hyeon Joo, founder of Mirae Asset Financial Group and its global investment and strategy officer (GISO), has set his sights on India as the company’s next growth target.

“We highly value India’s potential and have made active investments in the country over a long period of time. We want to grow together with India,” Park said at a ceremony in Mumbai in January, commemorating Mirae Asset Global Investments India’s 15th anniversary.

According to the International Monetary Fund, India’s GDP is forecast to expand 5.9% this year, outpacing China’s expected 5.2% growth.

In April, India overtook China to become the world’s most populous country.

Nevertheless, the country is young and has huge growth potential, analysts said.

The Indian population’s median age is estimated at 31 by 2030, compared to China’s 42.

With China showing signs of slowing down amid a trade dispute with the US, global funds are flowing into India.

According to Bloomberg News, India saw a fund inflow of some $13.6 billion in the second quarter.

AGGRESSIVE OVERSEAS EXPANSION

Mirae Asset Securities currently runs its overseas affiliates in 10 countries, including Indonesia, India, Vietnam, the UK and the US.

The company has expanded its presence in advanced countries by acquiring local financial firms. In May, Mirae Asset bought the UK’s leading exchange-traded funds (ETFs) manager Goldenberg Hehmeyer LLP (GHCO) for $35 million to step up its ETF services in Europe.

As of the end of June, Mirae Asset Securities’ global equity capital stood at over 4 trillion won.

Affiliate Mirae Asset Global Investments bought New York-based Global X ETF for $488 million in 2018.

The asset manager said last month its ETFs worldwide surpassed $100 billion in net asset value as the world’s 13th-largest EFT manager.

Write to Man-Su Choe at bebop@hankyung.com

In-Soo Nam edited this article.