Hanwha's Davos Play: Sealing Web3 Deals for a Digital Finance Future

DAVOS, Switzerland – January 22, 2026 – South Korean financial powerhouse Hanwha Finance has made a significant statement of intent at the 2026 World Economic Forum Annual Meeting, sealing strategic partnerships to accelerate its push into the global digital finance landscape. The conglomerate, which includes Hanwha Life and Hanwha Investment & Securities, announced key Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with U.S.-based venture capital firm Liberty City Ventures (LCV) and digital asset data provider Xangle, signaling a deep commitment to Web3, tokenized assets, and blockchain-based infrastructure.

The moves, executed amidst high-level discussions with global leaders in Davos, are designed to expand upon Hanwha's "future finance" strategy, which aims to merge the steadfast reliability of traditional finance with the open, innovative nature of the digital world. By forging these international alliances, the $130 billion asset manager is not only advancing its own technological capabilities but also aiming to elevate the global competitiveness of South Korea's entire financial industry.

A Global Stage for a Digital Strategy

Hanwha's activities in Davos represent a deliberate and public escalation of a strategy first detailed at Abu Dhabi Finance Week (ADFW) late last year. There, the company laid the groundwork for its vision of a hybrid financial future. At the WEF, this vision was articulated and put into action. Dong-Won Kim, Chief Global Officer (CGO) of Hanwha Life, engaged in pivotal discussions with international figures, including Sir John Chipman, Executive Chairman of The International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), to explore global cooperation in response to the rapidly changing financial environment.

The group’s outreach extended across its divisions. Hanwha Asset Management utilized the forum to fortify its global investment network, holding meetings with major institutional investors and asset managers such as Denmark's pension fund PKA, technology-focused private equity firm Thoma Bravo, and global credit investment firm HPS. These engagements underscore a multi-pronged approach to embedding itself within the global financial ecosystem, seeking both technological innovation and robust institutional partnerships.

This strategy builds on a series of prior digital initiatives. Hanwha has already ventured into creating customer-centric digital solutions, from its PINE mobile app for retail investors to strategic alliances with tech giants like Naver Financial. The firm’s focus on integrating artificial intelligence and big data into robo-advisors and wealth management platforms demonstrates a consistent drive toward a smarter, more accessible financial future.

Forging Strategic Alliances in Web3 and Data

The centerpiece of Hanwha's Davos agenda was the formalization of two critical partnerships. On January 21, Hanwha Life signed an MoU with Liberty City Ventures (LCV), a prominent New York-based venture capital firm with over $2 billion in assets under management and a sharp focus on Web3 and financial infrastructure. LCV is a significant player in the space, known for co-founding foundational blockchain companies like Paxos and Lukka. The agreement paves the way for joint investments in innovative global fintech companies and a collaborative effort to expand the digital finance ecosystem.

"We are pleased to partner with LCV, which has been advancing its investment strategies based on deep expertise in digital finance as well as a comprehensive understanding of regulation, technology, and global financial markets," said Byoungsu Lee, Head of the Investment Division at Hanwha Life. "Through close collaboration with global partners, we will continue to respond proactively to the evolving future financial environment and take a leading role."

Simultaneously, Hanwha Investment & Securities solidified its own alliance by signing an MoU with Xangle, a digital asset data infrastructure company. Founded with a mission to resolve information asymmetry in the virtual asset market, Xangle provides enterprise-grade Web3 solutions, on-chain data analytics, and research. The collaboration will focus on leveraging Xangle's data capabilities to enhance investment information and identify new global business opportunities in the burgeoning digital asset sector.

"Through this year's Davos Forum, we were able to gain insight into global discussions and trends in digital finance," commented Byung-Ho Jang, CEO of Hanwha Investment & Securities. "We will continue to closely review these global trends and identify new investment and financial business opportunities." This partnership directly addresses the need for reliable data and institutional-grade research as more traditional investors look to enter the complex world of digital assets.

Redefining Finance: Trust, Efficiency, and Competition

Beyond the formal agreements, Hanwha also contributed to the intellectual discourse at Davos by hosting the "Hanwha Finance Fireside Chat." Aligned with the forum's theme, "A Spirit of Dialogue," the session brought together leaders from its new partners to discuss the core challenges of financial innovation. The conversation provided crucial context for Hanwha's strategy, moving beyond technological buzzwords to the fundamental principles reshaping the industry.

Emil Woods, Founding Partner of LCV, offered a key insight, stating, "What reshapes finance is not technology itself, but the architecture of trust." This sentiment highlights that as financial systems become more decentralized and digitally native, the mechanisms for ensuring security, reliability, and confidence remain paramount. His comment suggests that the most successful innovations will be those that build new, robust models of trust for the digital age.

Complementing this, Junwoo Kim, Co-CEO of Xangle, emphasized a practical driver of the digital shift. "The essence of digital finance lies not in decentralization, but in efficiency," he remarked, adding that "financial infrastructure connecting capital, data, and transactions in real time will become increasingly important." This perspective grounds the lofty ideals of Web3 in the tangible benefits of speed, cost reduction, and accessibility that blockchain and related technologies can offer.

These strategic moves and philosophical underpinnings place Hanwha squarely within a fiercely competitive South Korean fintech landscape. Other major financial groups, including KB Financial Group and Shinhan Financial Group, are also investing heavily in digital transformation, AI, and blockchain solutions. KB Financial has partnered to build a digital asset ecosystem and launched an institutional custody solution, while NH Nonghyup Bank is leveraging blockchain for enhanced international transfers. Hanwha's approach, distinguished by its high-profile global partnerships forged at the WEF, appears designed to leapfrog domestic competition by directly integrating with a global network of innovators and capital.

From MoUs to Market Reality: The Path Forward

With the ink now dry on these agreements, the focus shifts to tangible outcomes. The collaboration between Hanwha Life and LCV is expected to spawn a portfolio of joint investments, injecting capital into promising fintech startups that could become integral parts of Hanwha's future service offerings. This venture capital-style approach allows the established giant to tap into agile innovation at its source.

For Hanwha Investment & Securities, the partnership with Xangle is set to produce more immediate results for clients. The integration of Xangle's on-chain data and research will likely lead to the development of sophisticated analytical tools and institutional-grade reports, equipping investors with the insights needed to navigate the volatile digital asset market. This follows a logical progression from Hanwha's previous MoU with digital wallet firm Kresus Labs, indicating a methodical build-out of a comprehensive digital asset infrastructure, from custody and tokenization to data and analysis.

Ultimately, these initiatives are interconnected components of Hanwha's overarching ambition to redefine asset management for a global audience. By strategically combining its institutional strength with the specialized expertise of global Web3 leaders, Hanwha Finance is not just participating in the future of finance but is actively working to construct its foundations, aiming to make asset management smarter, more efficient, and more trustworthy for investors worldwide.