Accordingly, JB Financial Group and its affiliate JB Investment have agreed to scoop up a combined 8 per cent stake in OKXE.

OKXE was launched in Vietnam in 2020 by CEO Kim Woo-seok, bringing used motorcycle transactions from offline to online. With over 8 million users as of end-2023, it has partnered with around 2,000 dealers.

Launched in 2020, OKXE is the first e-commerce platform in Vietnam that provides online motorbike transactions based on AI technology and big data. Over the past three years, OKXE has quickly expanded its reach to 8 million users as of the end of 2023. The platform has also affirmed its competitive edge by entering into partnerships with around 2,000 dealers.

JB Securities Vietnam, the brokerage arm of JB Financial, ties up with OKXE to expand its customer base through partnerships, promotions and marketing events.

In addition, the two sides have plans to leverage the OKXE platform as a springboard for JB Financial to enter the Vietnamese financial market, explore new business synergy opportunities in Vietnam as well as future expansion opportunities when OKXE ventures into Cambodia.

"OKXE is gaining market competitiveness by providing integrated online and offline services in the motorcycle market, which is a daily necessity in Vietnam," said Kim Woo-seok, CEO of OKXE.

"With this investment from JB Financial Group, we plan to serve as a bridgehead between the financial and motorcycle ecosystems and expand to other countries in Southeast Asia."

"Our strategic partnership with OKXE means that we are creating a model of mutual growth by investing in a domestic startup fintech company that has challenged overseas markets," said Kim Ki-hong, chairman of JB Financial Group. "We will not only expand the customer base of JBSV, a Vietnamese securities company, but also actively pursue joint expansion into other Southeast Asian markets."