Dunamu's Q1 Operating Profit Slides 78% as Crypto Trading Cools

Dunamu, the South Korean fintech firm that operates Upbit, posted a sharp decline in first-quarter earnings as activity in the virtual asset market slowed. In a filing with the Financial Supervisory Service on the 15th, the company said consolidated revenue fell 55% year on year to 235 billion won, down from 516 billion won a year earlier. Operating profit dropped 78% to 88 billion won from about 396 billion won. Net profit also slid 78% to roughly 70 billion won, compared with nearly 321 billion won in the same period last year. Dunamu attributed the weaker results to lower trading volumes amid a global economic downturn. With transaction fees accounting for 97% of revenue, the slowdown also weighed on customer deposits. Deposits totaled about 5 trillion won in the first quarter, down 11% from the end of last year. Separately, Dunamu has secured a 1 trillion won ($670 million) investment from Hana Financial Group. Under the deal, Hana Bank will acquire a 6.55% stake in Dunamu from Kakao Investment, making it the fourth-largest shareholder. The companies also agreed to work together on infrastructure for a won-based stablecoin ecosystem. In another development, Naver Financial, a unit of Naver Corp., agreed in November 2025 to acquire Dunamu in an all-stock transaction valued at about $10 billion. Dunamu is reportedly weighing an IPO after the deal closes.