South Korean Leverage ETF Trading Volume Drops 90% Following Regulatory Intervention

Trading volume for South Korean single-stock leverage ETFs fell 90% after regulators raised margin requirements and suspended new listings to curb market volatility.

Woofun AI reports that trading activity in South Korea’s single-stock leverage ETFs has declined sharply following regulatory tightening. The Financial Services Commission raised the minimum margin requirement for individual investors from 10 million won to 30 million won, mandated cash collateral, and suspended new product listings to mitigate market shock risks associated with high volatility in Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix stocks.

Data indicates that daily trading volume for the 16 related ETFs dropped from a peak of 15–20 trillion won to approximately 919.8 billion won on August 5, marking a 90% decrease. The products had generated nearly 3.7 billion won in management fees within two months of their May 27 launch, with Samsung Asset Management and Mirae Asset controlling over 90% of net assets. Although volume recovered slightly to 7.45 trillion won on July 27, this occurred prior to the August drop.