Most Securities Firms' HTS Fail to Recognize 'Negative Oil Prices,' Causing Confusion... Why Samsung Securities Avoided Damage

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Ju-yeon] As international crude oil prices plunged into negative territory for the first time in history, some securities firms' Home Trading Services (HTS) failed to recognize this value. Consequently, certain HTS platforms forcibly halted related trading, preventing investors from placing liquidation orders.

According to the financial investment industry on the 21st, Kiwoom Securities' HTS did not recognize the negative oil prices, causing investors who held long positions in crude oil futures through the platform to receive cash calls and be forcibly liquidated. Some are reported to have incurred not only principal losses but also debts.

On securities forums and other platforms, posts condemning this issue continue to appear. One investor lamented, "Because the HTS did not recognize the negative prices and trading stopped, those holding crude oil were forcibly reduced to zero value and faced cash calls," adding, "Even now, many have not been able to liquidate, and as prices fall, their debts are only increasing." They further stated, "When the May contract dropped to -$37, even those who bought at $20 and waited are now in a situation where the debt they owe exceeds their losses."

This failure to recognize negative prices was not limited to Kiwoom Securities but was common among other securities firms as well.

A securities industry official said, "This was an extremely unusual situation, and most securities firms commonly experienced the inability to recognize negative crude oil prices."

However, securities firms that originally did not offer crude oil futures trading were able to avoid the negative oil price shock. There were rumors that Samsung Securities forcibly liquidated investors who purchased before 3 p.m. the previous day to prevent damage, but this is incorrect.

A Samsung Securities representative explained, "Crude oil futures trading and ETNs tracking crude oil futures indices are separate products. Samsung Securities does not provide crude oil futures trading, so this issue did not occur with us."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.