Become a 'Tesla' Shareholder with Your Coffee Money... Financial Services Commission Designates 31 Innovative Financial Services

[Asia Economy Reporter Jin-ho Kim] Starting as early as this month, 20 securities firms will offer the 'Overseas Stock Fractional Trading Service.' This will allow investors to purchase major overseas stocks like Tesla, which cost over 1 million KRW per share, for the price of a cup of coffee.

According to the financial sector on the 13th, the Financial Services Commission held a regular meeting the day before and designated a total of 31 innovative financial services, including this one.

First, a new service was selected that allows investors to trade overseas stocks in fractional units through securities firms' trading systems. Currently, with Tesla and other overseas stocks priced over $1,000 (approximately 1.2 million KRW) per share, fractional trading will enable the purchase of as little as 0.01 shares for 12,000 KRW, equivalent to the price of two cups of coffee.

The securities firms designated for this innovative financial service include DB Financial Investment, KB Securities, KTB Investment & Securities, NH Investment & Securities, Kyobo Securities, Daishin Securities, Meritz Securities, Mirae Asset Securities, Samsung Securities, Shin Young Securities, Shinhan Financial Investment, Yuanta Securities, Eugene Investment & Securities, Kakao Pay Securities, Kiwoom Securities, Toss Securities, Hana Financial Investment, Hi Investment & Securities, Korea Investment & Securities, and Hanwha Investment & Securities, totaling 20 firms.

The Financial Services Commission expects that accessibility for individual investors to high-priced overseas stocks will expand, and that portfolio management efficiency will improve as diversified investments become possible with small amounts. Depending on each securities firm's system development status, the service may support up to the sixth decimal place in fractional shares. After the Korea Securities Depository system opens this month, the overseas stock fractional trading service will be launched sequentially by each securities firm.

The Financial Services Commission also designated the 'Small Amount Postpaid Payment Service' applied for by Viva Republica, which operates Toss and Toss Bank, as an innovative financial service. This service allows consumers who want to purchase goods or services to make postpaid payments up to 300,000 KRW per month after alternative credit evaluation using non-financial and unstructured data when their point balance is insufficient.

Shinhan Card's 'Non-face-to-face Card Issuance Service Using Facial Recognition Technology,' and the 'Financial Investment Gift Certificate Trading Service through Online Shopping Platforms' applied for by BNK Asset Management and Kyobo Securities were also designated as innovative financial services.

Additionally, Bellsoft's 'Prepaid Card Service for Foreign Tourists Using Unmanned Currency Exchange Machines' and Korea Credit Data's 'Rapid Settlement Service for Delivery Sales' were designated as well. Bellsoft plans to launch a service in April next year that allows foreign tourists visiting Korea to issue prepaid cards using unmanned currency exchange machines and use them at credit card-affiliated stores. Korea Credit Data will introduce a service this month that allows applicants to transfer settlement claims from affiliated stores such as restaurants, confirm the claim amount, and deposit the amount to the store the day after delivery sales occur.

Meanwhile, the Financial Services Commission decided to change the start date of the designation period for future innovative financial services to the service launch date. A Financial Services Commission official explained, "Innovative financial service providers will be able to secure a service provision period of up to two years starting from the actual market launch date," and added, "We will strive to ensure that the launch of innovative financial services is not delayed for a long time without unavoidable reasons."

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