Musicow Inc., a music copyrights trading platform in South Korea, will begin operations in the United States this year to leverage on escalated K-pop fandom and popularity in North America.

Musicow said Thursday that it will set up a U.S. office this year and make a foray into world’s largest music market that has shown great interest in financial technology and alternative investment assets from several years ago.

The company said that the U.S. offers a music fund market but not yet an active industry where people can personally engage in profit rights trade of music copyrights. Musicow will introduce an optimized model for the U.S. market after reviewing local system and legislation, it added.

Musicow in the U.S. will not only supply K-pop content but also foreign music content. The platform currently has the right of access to copyrights of about 10,000 songs including those of popular musicians IU and BTOB.

Hanwha Systems Co. backed Musicow in setting up the U.S. office as early-phase investor of about 6 billion won ($4.9 million) and strategic partner. Hanwha Systems also plan to support settlement of the U.S. subsidiary by assisting setting up of local infrastructure and creating funds for U.S. music source purchase.

Jung Hyun-kyung, chief executive of Musicow, said that the company will put out all efforts for successful service operations in the U.S. and enhance the status of innovative K-platform.

She added that the U.S. entry will become a new catalyst in expanding overall music ecosystem.

By Myung Ji-ye and Lee Eun-joo

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