DS Asset Management has entered the exchange-traded fund market, launching an actively managed ETF focused on Kosdaq growth stocks that draws on the company's stock-picking expertise built through years of hedge fund management.
The firm said Friday it will list its first ETF, the DS Kosdaq Active ETF, on the Korea Exchange on Tuesday.
The product is an active ETF that invests in leading companies within structurally growing industries on the Kosdaq market. Unlike passive ETFs that simply track an index, the fund has portfolio managers directly selecting stocks and adjusting weightings with the goal of outperforming its benchmark index.
The listing marks the first ETF from DS Asset Management, which was founded in 2008. The firm has invested across the full growth cycle of companies — from pre-IPO startups through to listed firms. As of the end of last month, its assets under management stood at approximately 5.5 trillion won ($3.64 billion). As of the end of last year, it ranked ninth in operating profit and 11th in total assets among 503 domestic asset management companies.
The company cited its accumulated network of corporate visits and investor relations contacts as a key competitive advantage, saying it has been able to identify promising companies at an early stage. It was recently selected as a major restructured manager for the National Growth Fund, a recognition of its investment capabilities.
DS Asset Management said the Kosdaq market is where its strengths are best put to use. With more than 1,800 listed companies but limited institutional research coverage, the Kosdaq is a market with significant information asymmetry — making stock analysis ability a decisive factor in investment performance.
The firm identified three key drivers it expects to propel the Kosdaq higher: earnings growth, strong government policy support and anticipated inflows of institutional funds. It noted that stocks outside the Kosdaq 150 index account for 40 percent of the market, meaning the success of Kosdaq investing hinges on precise stock selection.
DS Asset Management plans to use its corporate database — built through years of pre-IPO investing — to identify Kosdaq companies with high growth potential.
The firm has also differentiated its investment philosophy, adopting "Start the real active" as its ETF brand slogan. The approach aims to respond flexibly to market changes while transparently communicating the rationale behind investment decisions to investors. To that end, the company plans to operate an AI-based management and analysis system alongside daily AI-generated management reports and rebalancing reviews as part of its investor communication program.
"We have packaged DS's investment capabilities — previously accessible only to a select group of investors — into an ETF that anyone can invest in with a single brokerage account," said Kim Sung-hoon, chief executive of DS Asset Management. "We will present a new standard for active ETFs by embedding DS's philosophy of analyzing corporate growth rather than predicting the market."
moon@heraldcorp.com
