South Korean lawmakers are increasingly calling for action against single-stock leveraged exchange-traded funds, with opposition lawmaker Ahn Cheol-soo demanding their delisting. Ahn, a former presidential candidate from the conservative People Power Party, said the products tracking Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix have turned the Kospi index into a casino and are a complete policy failure eating away trillions of won in corporate value and public wealth. His comments follow a warning from ruling Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Eonju that retail investors' long-term use of these ETFs risks fueling speculative flows and harming the economy. The Bank of Korea has also said expanding investment in such ETFs could heighten market concentration in Samsung and SK Hynix, which together account for more than half of Korea's total market capitalization, and plans to strengthen monitoring.
SK Hynix IncLawmakers demand delisting of single-stock leveraged ETFs tracking SK Hynix, which could reduce speculative demand and negatively impact the stock.
Samsung Electronics Co LtdLawmakers demand delisting of single-stock leveraged ETFs tracking Samsung Electronics, which could reduce speculative demand and negatively impact the stock.