Private market exchange ADDX has raised US$20 million in fresh capital from new and existing shareholders. KB Securities, a subsidiary of South Korea’s largest banking group KB Financial Group (KBFG), led the latest investment, which was part of an upsized pre-Series B round.

The round kicked off in May 2022, when ADDX announced a US$58 million fundraise involving new shareholders Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET), Hamilton Lane and UOB.

The newest equity round brings total funds raised by ADDX since its 2017 inception to about US$140 million. Part of the newly raised capital will go towards growing ADDX Advantage, the company’s wealth management platform launched earlier this year for private banks, brokerages and family offices.

The investment will also be used to fund the firm’s global expansion, which includes plans to enter more markets both by working with partners and by obtaining new licences. ADDX is regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

The exchange gives individual investors greater access to private market deals that have traditionally been open only to institutional investors such as sovereign wealth funds and endowment funds. These include private credit and other fixed-income investments, private equity, hedge funds and private real estate.

Using blockchain and smart contract technology, ADDX is able to automate manual processes and thereby bring minimum subscription sizes down from US$1 million to US$5,000 while allowing secondary trading. The exchange has built a fully digital infrastructure for its regulated platform, with 60% of investment subscriptions now happening via its mobile app. This year it has grown the base of investors it serves by around 80% from a year ago.

KB Securities joins more than a dozen financial institutions that have become shareholders of ADDX. These include SET, Singapore Exchange, Hamilton Lane, Temasek subsidiary Heliconia Capital, UOB, Tokai Tokyo Financial Holdings, the Development Bank of Japan, Kiatnakin Phatra Financial Group, Krungsri Bank and Hanwha Asset Management.

KB Securities and ADDX will explore possible tie-ups to expand private market services in Asia, including potential collaborations in Singapore or Korea.