Mirae Asset Group has successfully acquired a local brokerage in India, the first case among South Korean players, as it strives into the emerging economic power for growth.

Mirae Asset Securities Co. announced Tuesday that it signed a stock purchase agreement with BNP Paribas to buy Sharekhan Ltd, an Indian securities firm, for about 30 billion rupees ($359 million).

The agreement comes five years after Mirae Asset Group advanced into the Indian capital market in 2018.

Sharekhan ? founded in 2000 and purchased by BNP Paribas in 2016 ? is the 10th largest brokerage firm in India, boasting an equity capital of $210 million, a workforce of over 3,500 employees, and about 3 million accounts.

The Indian brokerage has a total of 130 nationwide offices and more than 4,000 professional investment partners. Its net profit in 2022 was at $21 million last year.

The acquisition is expected to help solidify the market presence held by Mirae Asset Securities in India.

Mirae Asset Securities has secured more than 100,000 online investors since 2018.

In 2006, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. built its first Indian office in Mumbai, the financial capital of India.

Two years later, the Mirae Asset Global Investments’ Indian corporation launched its first local fund in 2008, and the office since then grew to the ninth largest brokerage firm in the country, with 56 local funds and total assets valued at 24.5 trillion won ($18.7 billion).

Mirae Asset Group Founder Park Hyeon-joo has particularly been focusing on India, because of its significant potential.

During the 15th-anniversary event of Mirae Asset Global Investments’ Indian corporation held in Mumbai in January, Park underscored that “India, with its lofty educational aspirations, top-notch universities, strong self-esteem, and widespread use of English, is a nation brimming with limitless growth opportunities.”

“The acquisition of Sharekhan will bring to us an opportunity to get ahead in the Indian stock market,” said an official from Mirae Asset Securities.

By Kim Tae-sung and Han Yubin

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