8percent buys STO platform Apanda to tokenize $1B+ in loan assets
What's the deal? South Korean peer-to-peer lender 8percent has acquired Apanda PartnersDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, a security token offering (STO) platform, to move its loan assets into the tokenization market. Terms were not disclosed. The plan: convert real estate-backed and corporate loans that 8percent sources and screens into digital investment products traded on Apanda.
Who's involved? Founded in 2014, 8percent is a first-generation P2P finance firm with cumulative loans of 1.4 trillion won, an average return of 10.36%, a delinquency rate of 1.65%, and a loss rate of 1.01%. Apanda, launched in 2021 by Shinhan Investment & Securities and blockchain company EQBRDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, runs a trading platform for monetary claim trust beneficiary certificates and is designated an innovative financial service by the Financial Services Commission.
What's the endgame? 8percent will use Apanda as the execution platform for tokenizing its loans. "We are expanding the stage of the asset business we have been doing into the digital capital market," chief executive officer Lee Hyo-jin said.
Why now? Lee argues the tokenization market hinges on assets, not technology. "The success or failure of the tokenization market depends not on blockchain technology but on what assets you can secure and manage," he said, citing BlackRock's asset management strength as the reason it leads.
What's next? The company is piloting a project that links the Kaia blockchain and overseas stablecoin funds to domestic loans. It secures dollar-based stablecoins from overseas investors, converts them to won, and invests in loan products. The first test is worth about $800,000, or roughly 1.192 billion won.
The signal: The deal reflects a wider push to bring alternative credit assets on-chain and connect them with global capital. Lee wants to build "a market where overseas investors can easily invest in Korea's high-quality alternative investment assets" — positioning tokenized private loans, not crypto trading, as the entry point.
Read more: The Seoul Economic Daily
