Mirae’s offer price was far higher than the market value estimated at 1.8 trillion won, beating KB Financial Group and other bidders.

According to banking sources, two of the rival bidders, Korea Investment & Securities and KB Financial Group, bid approximately 2.2 trillion won and 2.1 trillion won, respectively.

If Mirae Asset successfully acquires KDB Daewoo Securities, it will become the country’s largest brokerage by assets, with a combined capital of around 7.9 trillion won. This is about double the 4.6 trillion won of NH Investment and Securities, the current largest brokerage house by capital.

“The priority negotiator selection was made under the principles of ‘price, speed and contribution to the local capital market,’” the state-run KDB said in a press release.

The selection resulted from a “transparent and fair assessment by KDB’s financial experts,” the KDB added.

The Mirae Asset consortium must pay 5 percent of the bidding price by Jan. 4, or five business days after receiving KDB’s official notification.

Mirae Asset plans to sign the stock purchase agreement in January and start the investigative review in February.

The KDB Securities M&A deal is part of the government’s effort to privatize state-run financial companies, a state financing reform plan.

Since August 2013, the financial regulators have pushed a series of financing reform plans, including the privatization of KDB Securities and Woori Financial Group.

By Chung Joo-won (joowonc@heraldcorp.com)