Last Year KOSDAQ Disclosures Increased by 8.8%... Impact of COVID-19 Spread and Sharp Stock Price Fluctuations

Disclosure Inquiries Double Compared to Previous Year

[Asia Economy Reporter Kum Bo-ryeong] Last year, the number of disclosures in the KOSDAQ market increased by more than 8% compared to the previous year due to the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) and rapid stock price fluctuations.

According to the Korea Exchange on the 18th, the total number of disclosures by KOSDAQ-listed companies last year was 23,381, an 8.8% increase from the previous year.

Among ad hoc disclosures, disclosures of single sales and supply contracts increased by 46.7% to 1,534 cases compared to the previous year. This was due to an increase in order disclosures for medical devices such as diagnostic kits amid the spread of COVID-19 and changes in order contracts caused by the expansion of uncertainty in the business environment.

Disclosures related to the acquisition and disposal of treasury stocks (including trusts) due to rapid stock price fluctuations also increased by 51.3% to 1,003 cases compared to the previous year.

Due to an active shareholder rights exercise trend and an increase in marginal companies, disclosures related to lawsuits and corporate existence such as bankruptcy and rehabilitation increased by 52.3% and 33%, respectively, to 632 and 112 cases.

In addition, since the comprehensive disclosure guidelines specialized for pharmaceutical and bio companies were implemented from February last year, comprehensive disclosures of major management matters increased by 90.9% to 336 cases.

Fair disclosures increased by only 4.2% compared to the previous year. Although provisional business performance increased by 3.6%, disclosures of business performance forecasts and predictions decreased by 20%.

In the case of inquiry disclosures, they doubled compared to the previous year. Due to market volatility and expansion of transaction volume, inquiry disclosures related to market fluctuations increased by 165.8%, and those related to rumors and reports increased by 14.3%.

A Korea Exchange official said, "Due to the characteristics of early-stage growth companies, KOSDAQ-listed companies face difficulties in disclosure work due to inadequate disclosure systems and lack of disclosure professionals. To strengthen the disclosure capabilities of KOSDAQ-listed companies, we plan to actively support sincere disclosures by significantly expanding disclosure system consulting from 25 companies last year to 100 companies this year and enhancing disclosure education."

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