DS Investment & Securities

What DS Investment & Securities does

DS Investment & Securities operates in the Korean market under the operating brand Taurus Asset Management (토러스자산운용 주식회사), a Seoul-based investment firm that traces its origins to Taurus Investment Advisory, founded on August 25, 1997. The firm was reorganized in February 2022 when it registered for general private placement investment business and rebranded from an investment advisory company into a licensed asset manager, transitioning from discretionary advisory mandates to pooled fund vehicles. It is led by founder-CEO Kim Young-min (English name: Richard Kim), with Lee Chi-hoon as CIO, and operates with a small team of approximately nine employees from the 14th floor of KT Yeouido Tower in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul. As of June 22, 2026, the firm reported assets under management of KRW 11.4 trillion (approximately US$7.5 billion).

The firm's core business is active equity management of large-cap Korean equities, applying a long-term "franchise value" investing philosophy with disclosed concentration in names such as Samsung Electronics, KB Financial, and E-Mart. Research coverage is published across sectors including semiconductors, defense, shipbuilding, and healthcare/biotech, and findings are distributed through financial news outlets such as Korea Economic Daily, Chosun Ilbo, Nate, and Korea Herald. Distribution is executed through partnerships with all six major Korean securities firms — Samsung Securities, KB Securities, NH Investment & Securities, Korea Investment & Securities, Hana Financial Investment, and Shinhan Investment — providing broad retail and institutional access within Korea.

Revenue mechanics are fee-based on AUM, typical of a Korean licensed asset manager, though no fee schedule or pricing model is publicly disclosed. Historical performance citations of 210% over 2014-2017 and 197% in another period, combined with regular stewardship, proxy voting, and business report filings, support the firm's positioning as a performance-led, founder-controlled boutique. Note: the firmographics header identifies the entity as "DS Investment & Securities" founded in 2008 with 1-10 employees and website taurus.co.kr, while the substantive structured data and the taurus.co.kr website itself describe Taurus Asset Management founded in 1997; this analysis treats them as the same underlying entity based on shared domain and overlapping description, and flags the discrepancy as a data integrity issue.

Name

DS Investment & Securities

Legal name

토러스자산운용 주식회사

Website

https://taurus.co.kr

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

DS Investment & Securities (operating as Taurus Asset Management) is a Seoul-based, founder-led Korean asset manager managing KRW 11.4 trillion (~US$7.5B) as of June 2026 via large-cap Korean equity strategies, distributed through the six major Korean brokerages.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Asset Management

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), All Other Financial Investment Activities (52399)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Equity Research (FSACAGAA)

Keywords

• Equity research services
• Investment advisory
• Asset management
• Securities consulting
• Korean stock analysis

Headquarters

HQ city

Yongdungpo

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

DS Investment & Securities (operating via Taurus Asset Management) provides asset management with KRW 11.4 trillion in client assets under management, equity research coverage of 3,200+ Korean listed companies, and securities investment consulting services. The firm focuses on Korean equities with concentrated sector expertise in semiconductors, defense, shipbuilding, healthcare, and biotech, applying a long-term compound-interest investment approach with a 3-5 year holding horizon.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Asset Management Services Discretionary investment management of client portfolios focused on Korean equities with long-term compound-interest approach, currently managing KRW 11.4 trillion in AUM as of June 22, 2026, distributed via channel partnerships with six major Korean securities firms.
• Equity Research Coverage of 3,200+ Korean listed companies with concentrated sector expertise in semiconductors, defense, shipbuilding, healthcare, and biotech, including target price recommendations and long-term investment theses delivered via financial news media and partner securities firms.
• Securities Investment Consulting Advisory services to clients investing in Korean equities, leveraging the firm's 28+ year research track record and proprietary sector expertise to guide long-term investment decisions across Korean listed stocks.

Quantifiable outcome

• DS Investment & Securities analysts provide target prices with specific valuation metrics (e.g., 61,000 KRW target for HK Innoen representing 6.7% discount to consensus)

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Mirae Asset Global Investments:

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments3 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about DS Investment & Securities