[DigitalToday reporter Oh Sang-yup] Dunamu, operator of Upbit, and Bithumb, South Korea's two biggest digital asset exchanges, held annual shareholder meetings on Monday and formalised plans to pursue initial public offerings. Both companies put a listing forward as a key task, but showed differences over specific timing and their approach.

Dunamu to pursue IPO immediately after merger completion; "Sufficient funds secured for response"

Dunamu held its 14th annual general meeting of shareholders on Monday. The main focus of the meeting was its merger with Naver Financial and its IPO plans.

Dunamu Chief Executive Officer Kyung-seok Oh (오경석) said the merger has been delayed because the company is undergoing procedures for the Fair Trade Commission's approval of the business combination and the Financial Services Commission's approval for a change in major shareholder. He said it is an unprecedented large deal and authorities are taking time to find a reasonable direction. On the IPO timing, he made clear that closing the deal with Naver Financial is a precondition.

Naver and Dunamu previously announced a comprehensive share swap plan in November last year. They were reported to have decided to list Naver Financial, which would hold 100% of Dunamu after the swap, on Nasdaq in the United States or elsewhere within 5 years.

To that end, the two companies planned to hold a shareholder meeting for the share swap on May 22 and close the deal on June 30. As the review by authorities took longer, they changed the shareholder meeting date to Aug. 18, three months later, and the closing date to Sept. 30.

Dunamu Chief Financial Officer Seung-hyun Nam (남승현) said the phrase "listing within 5 years" mentioned in the media refers to the final deadline under the contract. He said the company will prepare to list on the stock market immediately in line with when the transaction is completed. He said it has not yet reached a conclusion on the listing market, whether domestic or overseas.

As a future direction, it presented that it is specifically reviewing a combination of AI and blockchain, attracting corporate and foreign customers, and expansion into overseas markets including Upbit Global.

Bithumb to reappoint CEO Lee Jae-won; "List after strengthening internal controls through 2027"

Bithumb also held its 12th annual shareholder meeting the same day and approved the reappointment of Chief Executive Officer Jae-won Lee (이재원) and inside director Seung-wook Hwang (황승욱).

On the IPO schedule, Chief Financial Officer Sang-kyun Jung (정상균) said it has signed an advisory contract with Samjong KPMG through the end of 2027 and is working to strengthen accounting policies and internal controls.

Bithumb said it plans to focus on upgrading internal controls and enhancing corporate value through 2027 before pursuing a listing. It is also being discussed that the actual listing could take place after 2028. The company said it will also consider the introduction of the Basic Act on Digital Assets and adjust the timing accordingly.

Shareholders raised recent issues including a bitcoin mispayment incident and a Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) fine of around 36 billion won.

The mispayment was caused by an employee's mistake in entering a bitcoin unit instead of a won unit. The company said it completed supplementary measures during a Financial Supervisory Service inspection process in February and set up a company-wide internal control task force to prevent a recurrence.

On the FIU fine, Strategy Division head Joo-hyun Lee (이주현) said it is reviewing whether to file an objection and pursue an administrative lawsuit, considering the company's interests and value.

Lee said the company is reviewing collaboration with various companies and M&A proposals to improve its single revenue structure, with fee income accounting for 97.69% of revenue.

On dividends, it said it will continue board-level discussions to enhance shareholder value. It also passed, as originally proposed, an amendment to its articles of incorporation to raise the total possible amount of convertible bond issuance to 300 billion won from 150 billion won to increase flexibility in raising external funds.