Korea’s Mirae Asset to acquire U.S. ETF provider Global X

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. will acquire Global X Management Co., a United States-based exchange-traded fund (ETF) issuer with nearly $10.2 billion in assets, the Korean company said Monday.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter.

The Seoul-based financial firm believes the acquisition of Global X will be a bridge to entering the American market, which accounts for more than 70 percent of the global ETF market. Mirae Asset has tried to expand its global presence in the ETF market by acquiring Horizons in Canada, BetaShare in Australia and Tiger ETFs in Asia.

Established in 2008, Global X is known for its technology-focused EFT lineups such as Global X Robotics & Artificial Intelligence ETF, which returned more than 58 percent year-to-date through the end of last year.

With the acquisition of Global X, Mirae Asset will have $30 billion in ETF assets, making itself the world’s 18th largest ETF issuer. Currently, it ranks 21st with ETFs offered in six countries.

The index-tracking passive fund market is growing fast across the world. According to ETFGI, an international ETF consultancy, there were 5,311 ETFs offered by 319 issuers in the world as of the end of last year. ETF assets totaled $4.6 trillion worldwide, up about 37 percent last year alone.

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