180% YTD: bet on SpaceX propels Korean brokerage to top of global index

Shares of South Korean broker Mirae Asset Securities more than tripled in value in 2026, Bloomberg writes. This surge has brought the Seoul-based company to the leaders of the MSCI global equity index. Such rapid dynamics is explained by the fact that investors began to use Mirae Asset securities as a tool for indirect investment in SpaceX Elon Musk ahead of a large-scale IPO of the space corporation, writes Bloomberg.

According to The Korea Economic Daily, Mirae Asset has been investing in SpaceX since 2022, and last year it also invested more than $10 million in Elon Musk's xAI. Since then, according to the latest analyst reports cited by Bloomberg, the volume of Mirae Asset's investments in SpaceX and xAI has reached more than $400 million. Against the background of the preparation for the listing of SpaceX, whose preliminary valuation has already reached $1.25 trillion, there is a real excitement in the market related to Mirae Asset, the agency points out. The broker's shares have grown by more than 180% since the beginning of 2026.

SpaceX could IPO as early as this year and expects to raise up to $50 billion at a valuation of about $1.5 trillion.

In addition to investments in SpaceX and xAI, Mirae Asset's $7.5 billion portfolio also includes stakes in U.S. AI startup Perplexity AI and Chinese drone maker DJI Technology, Bloomberg writes."Profits from our investments in SpaceX and xAI will be reinvested in global mergers and acquisitions," Mirae Asset Group founder Park Hyeon-ju told The Korea Economic Daily. Park estimates that the operating profit and results of the company's investments in SpaceX and xAI on the horizon of the next five years will be about $20 billion.

Those estimates are backed by the company's latest reports, Bloomberg points out: in 2025, Mirae Asset's brokerage revenue grew 43%, hitting a new high.

In addition, the success of Mirae Asset also reflects the overall rise of the South Korean stock market. The Kospi index has performed the best in the world in 2026 (plus 37.83% while, for example, the broad index of American stocks S&P 500 rose by only 0.24%), the agency points out. Bloomberg attributes the rise in South Korean stocks to optimism around demand for AI chips and corporate governance reforms initiated by South Korean President Lee Jae-men. The rise of the Korean index in 2026 was a continuation of the strongest rally of 2025, when it added 76%.

"Mirae Asset's fundamentals are improving due to the strong Korean market, while the stake in SpaceX serves as an additional catalyst, allowing investors to capitalize on two sources of value simultaneously," said Eugene Asset Management Chief Investment Officer Ha Seok Keun (quoted by Bloomberg).

However, the rapid rise of Mirae Asset securities raised doubts about possible overheating of the asset. Now the shares are traded with the ratio of 21 to the forecasted profit, which is three times higher than the average indicator for the last five years, Bloomberg points out. During trading on February 20 in Korea, Mirae Asset securities fell by 3.2%, but at the end of the session still closed 0.5% in the plus.

KB Securities analyst Kang Seungun warns that current estimates look inflated. "Most of [the company's] earnings growth is unrealized gains from consolidated funds, which limits the direct impact on the company's equity," the analyst said. - Thus, we see high uncertainty in the transformation of paper earnings into real shareholder returns."

Brokerages were among the top growth performers this year in South Korea's Kospi, Bloomberg notes. This was helped by the local government's efforts to raise capital valuations and attract retail investors. Shares of South Korean investment bank SK Securities Co. in particular have risen about 200% this year, while South Korean asset manager Hanwha Investment & Securities Co. - by more than 100%.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor