HYOSUNG TO DOUBLE TRANSFORMER OUTPUT TO CONQUER US MARKET
The US transformer-making unit of South Korea’s Hyosung Heavy eyes over 10% share of the US market within two years
By Woo-Sub Kim Mar 03, 2025
Hyosung HICO plant in Memphis, Tennessee (Courtesy of Hyosung HICO)
MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- South Korea’s major power system and machinery conglomerate Hyosung Heavy Industries Corp. plans to nearly double its annual transformer output in the US to over 250 units in two years, gearing up for a surge in transformer demand during the artificial intelligence boom.
Hyosung HICO Ltd., Hyosung Heavy Industries’ transformer-manufacturing operation in the US, plans to ramp up the annual transformer production capacity of its plant in Memphis, Tennessee, to more than 250 units – from the current 130 – before 2027. In the first phase, it will expand the capacity by 53.5% to 200 units by early 2026, and then over 250 in the following year, which would cost the company hundreds of billions of Korean won (hundreds of millions of US dollars) in total. After it completes the plant’s capacity expansion, Hyosung HICO is expected to command more than a 10% share in the US transformer market versus last year’s 6%, said Jason E. Neal, president of Hyosung HICO. Neal projects that Hyosung’s transformer sales and output in the US would beat those of the market’s current top two, Siemens and General Electric (GE), within two years to become the largest US transformer producer and seller. His confidence lies in the company’s huge five-year transformer order backlog, driven by strong replacement demand for aging power equipment and installation demand from AI-driven new data centers set to spring up across the US.
A 525-kV transformer in Hyosung HICO plant
TRANSFORMER DEMAND WILL REMAIN HIGH FOR A WHILE
A transformer is an essential part of an electrical system as it changes the voltage level of electricity produced by power plants for the efficient transmission of electrical energy. The cost to build each unit ranges from 6 billion to 20 billion won ($14 million). Hyosung HICO is the only US producer of 765-kilovolt (kV) transformers, which cost about 20 billion won per unit. The company has recently bagged an order to manufacture the ultra-high-voltage transformer from one of the top five US utility companies. Hyosung moved much faster than its competitors in making bold investments to develop ultra-high-voltage transformers while others hesitated, said Hyosung HICO president.
The company’s transformers are highly sought after by its customers in the US, where it has been supplying them to US utility companies since 1999. Hyosung is expected to win more transformer orders in the US.
Workers in Hyosung HICO's plant in Memphis, Tenn. The US government under President Donald Trump has decided to simultaneously build more liquefied natural gas (LNG), renewable energy and nuclear power plants to cope with mounting electricity demand from data centers powering AI. Transformers are required to run power plants and data centers. Further, over 70% of the US electricity grids are more than 25 years old, meaning that the demand to replace old transformers with new ones is set to increase further in the next decade. Encouraged by the rosy outlook, Hyosung's cross-town rival HD Hyundai Electric Co. also announced a plan earlier this year to invest about half of its 2024 operating profit, estimated at 720 billion won, to bump up its transformer output at its US plant in Alabama to 150 units a year from the current 100.
NO TARIFFS
Hyosung is poised to win more transformer orders in the US without worrying about tariffs thanks to its transformer plant in Tennessee. 
Hyosung's ultra-high-voltage transformer. Hyosung acquired the Memphis plant from Japan’s Mitsubishi Electric Power Products for $45 million in 2020 to avoid heavy tariffs the first Trump administration threatened to impose on imports. The brave investment has proved to be a stroke of genius.
Driven by the increasing price of transformers on their high demand, Hyosung Heavy Industries’ operating profit hit its historic high of 362.5 billion won in 2024, and this year’s profit is forecast to exceed 500 billion won, according to market analysts. Its operating profit in 2020 stood at 44.1 billion won. Backed by the strong demand for transformers, Hyosung plans to transform its Memphis plant into a place where it can produce not only transformers but also other power equipment such as industrial circuit breakers and static synchronous compensators (statcom) to beef up profitability, the company said.
Mirae Asset rises to 12th-largest ETF manager with $141 billion in assets
Its growth in Asia is noteworthy, with its Indian unit expanding the fastest among its global affiliates
South Korea’s leading asset manager Mirae Asset Financial Group has emerged as the world’s 12th-largest exchange-traded fund (ETF) manager with over 200 trillion won ($141 billion) in net asset value (NAV). According to Mirae Asset Securities Co.'s overseas asset management affiliate Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. on Wednesday, the group operates 624 ETFs managing $141 billion across 13 countries as of the end of November. Mirae Asset doubled its ETF assets in just three years. In 2021, it managed 100 trillion won in NAV globally. The company attributed its rapid growth to its aggressive mergers and acquisitions strategy, through which it has established a broad global network.
Mirae Asset entered the ETF market in 2006 under the leadership of Chairman Park Hyeon Joo, launching ETF products under the TIGER brand in Korea. As of the end of November, TIGER ETFs held a 36% market share in the domestic ETF market.
Park, founder and chairman of the group, assumed the group’s global investment and strategy officer (GISO) role in 2018 to lead Mirae Asset’s global expansion.
AGGRESSIVE M&As
Park has pushed the investment firm’s global expansion through M&As. Under his leadership, Mirae Asset Global Investments acquired Canada’s Horizons ETFs in 2011, which was rebranded as Global X Investments Canada Inc.
Global X Canada has become the fourth-largest ETF manager in the country, with a focus on income-generating ETFs that periodically pay out cash. In 2018, the company acquired the US-based Global X ETFs for $488 million. Global X ETFs, known for its strength in thematic ETFs, has seen a fivefold rise in assets under management since then.
Mirae Asset also bought Sydney-based ETF Securities, which accounts for 4% of Australia’s ETF market, for 120 billion won ($95.2 million) and later rebranded it as Global X ETFs Australia.
Last year, Mirae Asset bought the UK’s leading ETF manager Goldenberg Hehmeyer LLP (GHCO) for $35 million to step up its ETF services in Europe, the world’s second-largest after the US.
RAPID GROWTH IN INDIA
Mirae Asset's growth in Asia is noteworthy. It established Mirae Asset Global Investments’ first global affiliate in Hong Kong in December 2003. In 2011, it became the first Korean asset management firm to list an ETF on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Mirae Asset has also established Global X Japan, a joint venture with Daiwa Securities, in 2019.
Mirae Asset’s Indian subsidiary is one of its fastest-growing affiliates worldwide. Mirae Asset Securities established its India operations in 2018 – Korea’s first brokerage to do so in the country.
Mirae Asset continues to blaze trail in global investments
기자명 Tim Kim Published 2025.02.03 15:29
Korean financial giant vows to keep forging ahead in overseas markets
Pictured is Four Seasons Hotel Sydney, which is owned by South Korean financial conglomerate Mirae Asset Group. [Photo courtesy of Mirae Asset Group]
South Korea’s Mirae Asset Group noted on Feb. 3 that the financial conglomerate would continue to blaze a trail in global investments down the road. The Seoul-based outfit vows to keep finding alternative investment opportunities as part of efforts to become a global investment bank like Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan. When it comes to alternative investments, Mirae Asset has been second to none among Korean competitors and is regarded as one of the top Asian players. Now, the entity hopes to forge a path to become a world-class leader. For instance, Mirae Asset has taken over such prestigious hotels as the Four Seasons and Fairmont.
In addition, the corporation has made strategic investments in many innovative firms, including SpaceX and X, which is formerly known as Twitter.
Most recently, Mirae Asset launched Mirae Asset Sharekhan in India, with a bold vision to become one of the country’s top five brokerage houses within five years. The growth of the group is underpinned by its two representative subsidiaries of Mirae Asset Securities and Mirae Asset Global Investments.
The former is a top-tier brokerage in the South Korean market with the country’s largest equity capital. The latter manages the nation’s biggest Nasdaq 100 ETF under the TIGER brand.
Mirae Asset founding Chairman Park Hyeon-joo now serves as the group’s Global Strategy Officer. [Photo below courtesy of Mirae Asset Group]
Visionary leader
Observers point out that the exponential growth of Mirae Asset Group has been boosted by its visionary founding Chairman Park Hyeon-joo, who also works as the entity’s Global Strategy Officer. Under the stewardship of Chairman Park, Mirae Asset has been proactive in diversifying portfolios, mitigating market volatility, and hedging against inflation, which are the features of global top IBs. The results have been impressive.
For instance, the Four Seasons Sydney, purchased in Sept. 2013, has appreciated by 79.3 percent and is now valued at about AUD 610 million ($375 million) as of Sept. 2024.
Similarly, the Fairmont Orchid in Hawaii, acquired in May 2015, has increased in value by 68.9 percent, reaching an estimated $ 380 million.
Given the complexities of valuing alternative assets compared to traditional stocks and bonds, Mirae Asset claims that the firm’s successful investments in this sector amply demonstrate its expertise and strategic acumen as a global IB.
Since 2022, the company has invested more than 800 billion won ($550 million) in such high-tech firms as SpaceX, X, and AI startup xAI.
As of Nov. 2023, the valuations of these investments had increased by around 1.5 times, with expectations for further growth, according to Mirae Asset.
M&A strategy for global expansion
Watchers pick Mirae Asset’s aggressive approach to mergers and acquisitions (M&A) as a key driver of its global competitiveness. Chairman Park is famous for having long championed the idea that Korean firms should create national wealth by expanding overseas and entering global markets through bold M&A activities. Currently serving as the Global Strategy Officer, he continues to oversee significant M&As and equity investments.
Driven by his strategic vision and commitment to expansion, Mirae Asset has made several crucial acquisitions over the past several years to strengthen its global presence.
In 2018, the company gobbled up Global X, a leading U.S.-based thematic ETF provider. This was followed by the acquisition of Global X Australia in 2022 and Australian robo-advisor Stockspot in 2023. Plus, Mirae Asset acquired GHCO, a European ETF market-making specialist. In India, the corporation completed the purchase of Sharekhan late last year to launch Mirae Asset Sharekahn in the potential-loaded South Asian country. With this acquisition, Mirae Asset expects that its global business will generate an additional 100 billion won ($68 million) in annual profit.
By allocating 40 percent of its equity capital to overseas operations, Mirae Asset projects its global business to chalk up 500 billion won ($340 million) in pre-tax profits beginning in 2027.
Over the past 21 years, Mirae Asset has successfully expanded its international footprint, now operating 47 overseas subsidiaries and offices across 19 regions. “With 21 trillion won ($14 billion) in equity capital and 840 trillion won ($570 billion) in global client assets under management, Mirae Asset has established itself as Asia’s premier investment bank,” a Mirae Asset official said.
“Looking ahead, we are preparing to ascend to the ranks of the world’s top-tier investment banks, continuing our trajectory of innovation, strategic expansion, and long-term value creation.”
Mirae Asset Group strives to establish itself as global investment bank powerhouse
By Lee Yeon-woo Posted : 2025-01-22 16:03
Mirae Asset Group is striving to become a global investment powerhouse under the leadership of its founder, Chairman Park Hyeon-joo, through active investments in global alternative assets and innovative technologies.
Since 2022, the group has invested over 80 billion won ($55.6 million) in SpaceX, X (formerly Twitter) and xAI. These investments have reportedly grown by approximately 1.5 times in market value and are expected to continue increasing. The group has also achieved significant returns from investments in global alternative assets, such as luxury hotels in major tourist destinations. For instance, Four Seasons Hotel Sydney was valued at approximately 610 million Australian dollars ($381.8 million) as of September 2024, marking a 79.3 percent increase since its initial investment in 2013. Similarly, Fairmont Orchid in Hawaii has reached a valuation of 380 million dollars, reflecting a 68.9 percent increase since 2015. Mirae Asset Group is also gaining a competitive edge through bold mergers and acquisitions (M&A). "Korean companies should focus on creating national wealth through overseas operations and actively pursue M&As to establish a strong presence in the global market," Park said.
Under Park’s leadership as global strategy officer, the group has expanded overseas, acquiring key entities such as Global X, a leading U.S. thematic exchange-traded funds (ETFs) provider, Australian asset management firm Global X Australia, Australian robo-advisory company Stockspot and GHCO, a European ETF market-making specialist. As a result, Mirae Asset Group has built the largest global network among Korean financial firms, operating 47 overseas subsidiaries and offices across 19 regions over 21 years of international expansion. "With 21 trillion won in equity capital and 840 trillion won in global client assets, we aim to evolve from Asia’s leading investment bank into a top-tier global investment bank," a Mirae Asset Group official said.