K-OTC Market Surpasses 1 Trillion Won in Annual Trading Volume

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Ju-yeon] The annual trading volume of the Korea Over-the-Counter Stock Market (K-OTC), a trading market for unlisted stocks, has surpassed 1 trillion won.

On the 15th, the Korea Financial Investment Association announced that the annual trading volume of the K-OTC market exceeded 1 trillion won for the first time since the market's establishment in August 2014. Following last year's trading volume of 990.4 billion won, this year it has reached 1 trillion won within the year.

The cumulative trading volume surpassed 3 trillion won in June last year and has exceeded 3.5 trillion won this year. Notably, the time taken to surpass cumulative trading volumes of 1 trillion won, 2 trillion won, and 3 trillion won has shortened to 3 years and 7 months, 1 year and 6 months, and 9 months, respectively.

The Financial Investment Association analyzed that this is due to tax benefits such as capital gains tax exemption and reduced securities transaction tax for small shareholders of small and medium-sized enterprises, trading convenience, an increase in listings from the K-OTC market, and growing investor interest in unlisted stocks as an alternative to public offering investments.

Since the establishment of the K-OTC market, a total of 13 companies have been listed on the Stock Market (4 companies) and KOSDAQ Market (9 companies), and currently, Aplus Asset Advisors and Osang Healthcare are undergoing procedures to be listed on the KOSPI Market and KOSDAQ Market, respectively.

The average daily trading volume of the K-OTC market in 2020 was approximately 5.1 billion won, increasing about eightfold over the past four years. It rose from 650 million won in 2016 to 1.09 billion won in 2017, 2.77 billion won in 2018, and reached 4.03 billion won last year.

Additionally, this year, a total of 10 companies have participated as new trading firms, showing active corporate entry.

Nam Dal-hyun, Head of Market Management at the Korea Financial Investment Association, stated, "As the market becomes more active, the advantages of K-OTC trading, such as appropriate corporate valuation and image enhancement, are highlighted, leading to increased inquiries from companies seeking entry. We will continue to expand trading companies through various promotions, marketing, and cooperation with related organizations, while simultaneously enhancing investment information and improving systems to establish a virtuous cycle structure in the market."

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