Hanwha Asset Management PLUS ETFs Surpass 10 Trillion Won in Total Net Assets

Hanwha Asset Management announced on the 12th that the total net assets of its PLUS exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have surpassed 10 trillion won.

According to the Korea Exchange, as of the close of trading on the 11th, the total net assets of PLUS ETFs exceeded 10 trillion won. This milestone reflects the tangible results that began to emerge after the brand was relaunched as "PLUS" in July 2024. Net assets, which were in the mid-3 trillion won range in the second half of 2024, have grown by about three times in roughly one year and seven months, demonstrating rapid growth.

Hanwha Asset Management’s recent performance is significant in that it is not the product of a short-term market rally, but the result of redesigning its brand and strategy. PLUS ETFs have strengthened product competitiveness by nurturing flagship strategy funds focused on two main pillars: K-Defense and high dividends. This restructuring quickly translated into net asset growth and led to the achievement of 10 trillion won in ETF net assets.

PLUS ETFs have steadily supplied differentiated products that reflect investor demand and have been chosen by the market. In 2025 alone, they rapidly expanded their presence in the ETF market by successively launching trillion-won-scale ETFs such as "PLUS High Dividend Stocks," "PLUS K-Defense," and "PLUS 200."

In particular, one of the flagship lineups is the high-dividend stock series, which has grown to a combined scale of about 3 trillion won. Centered on PLUS High Dividend Stocks (about 2.1 trillion won), the largest high-dividend ETF in Korea, the company has diversified its product range based on high-dividend stocks by introducing products such as "PLUS High Dividend Stock Bond Mix," "PLUS High Dividend Stock Weekly Covered Call," "PLUS High Dividend Stock Weekly Fixed Covered Call," "PLUS Share Buyback High Dividend Stocks," and "PLUS U.S. High Dividend Stocks Active," thereby broadening investors’ choices.

The defense series is also a core growth driver of PLUS ETFs. In January 2023, Hanwha Asset Management became the first in Korea to launch an ETF investing in domestic defense industry companies, and under the PLUS brand system it has grown PLUS K-Defense to a scale of about 1.5 trillion won. It then expanded the lineup to include "PLUS Global Defense," "PLUS K-Defense Materials, Parts and Equipment," and "PLUS K-Defense Leverage," establishing a dominant position in the defense industry theme.

Geum Jeongseop, Head of the ETF Business Division at Hanwha Asset Management, said, "We closely analyzed investors’ needs and provided differentiated investment solutions," adding, "Going forward, we will focus not only on our domestic product lineup, which is at the core of PLUS ETFs, but also on supplying products that the market needs, including overseas themes, dividend strategies, and pension-focused products."

Hanwha Asset Management’s PLUS ETFs are also expanding their footprint beyond Korea into overseas markets, building a track record in financial exports. In February last year, the company collaborated with ETC by providing the underlying index for a product listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the "U.S. K-Defense ETF," whose net assets have surpassed about 140 million dollars (approximately 204 billion won).

The U.S. K-Defense ETF recorded the highest return in the U.S. market in the first half of last year at 163.3% (excluding leveraged and inverse products). It has also been recognized for its product quality overseas, having been nominated in the "Best New International Equity ETF" category at the "2026 ETF.com Awards."

In addition, Hanwha Asset Management’s PLUS ETFs are reported to have filed a listing application with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for a product that tracks an index composed of Korea’s core manufacturing companies. This marks the second collaboration with ETC targeting the U.S. market, following the U.S. K-Defense ETF.

Choi Youngjin, Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) at Hanwha Asset Management, said, "Since the PLUS rebrand, we have been establishing a growth formula of developing Korea’s leading themes and expanding them into global markets," adding, "We aim to drive changes in the status of Korean industry and the capital market through various efforts to lower the barriers to investing in Korea for global investors. By attracting overseas investment capital into the domestic market, we will take the lead in driving a value-up of the Korean stock market."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.