Seoul Exchange Unlisted "Strengthening Criteria for Traded Companies and Designation of Investment Caution Companies"

"Simply Increasing the Number of Stocks Is Not the Answer... Focus on Investor Protection"

[Asia Economy Reporter Minwoo Lee] The unlisted stock trading platform 'Seoul Exchange Unlisted' is introducing investor protection policies, including strengthening the criteria for listing companies and designating companies requiring investment caution.

On the 24th, PSX, the operator of Seoul Exchange Unlisted, announced this policy. Kim Seyoung, CEO of PSX, stated, "We will apply strengthened corporate criteria at the time of stock listing to restrict the companies traded. Despite the principle of investor self-responsibility when investing, companies that do not meet the minimum standards to reduce stock instability in the unlisted market will be blocked from entry. Additionally, companies already listed and traded will be regularly inspected once a year, and if they meet one or more of the investment caution criteria, they will be classified as investment caution stocks."

Going forward, investment caution information will be displayed at the top of the stock listing. The platform will monitor these stocks and decide whether to suspend trading. Furthermore, existing listed stocks will be inspected periodically once a year. Currently, there are 361 companies registered on Seoul Exchange Unlisted, but this number will be reduced to below 300 in the future.

Until now, Seoul Exchange Unlisted only registered companies that had been in existence for more than one year and upon request by the actual stock owners. However, this measure is a result of research into stronger conditions to protect general investors, triggered by the Eastar Jet incident. Additionally, it was decided not to register companies in industries prohibited for venture businesses. Previously, Seoul Exchange Unlisted recalled all Eastar Jet shares traded after the free cancellation of Eastar Jet’s old shares and suspended trading.

CEO Kim emphasized, "Increasing the number of registered companies excessively in the unlisted market platform is tantamount to harming investor protection. In reality, the actively traded unlisted stocks on the platform are limited, so rather than excessively increasing the number of stocks, it is important to enhance the market surveillance function to ensure that the registered stocks do not cause problems in the market."

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