[Smart Finance Awards] Evolving MTS 'Fierce Competition'

Judging Comments - Jung Soonseop, Chief Judge (Professor at Seoul National University School of Law)

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Seon-ae] The 12th annual Asia Economy '2022 Asia Smart Finance Awards' was organized to distinguish the best among Korea's top-tier Mobile Trading Systems (MTS) and to help them evolve into more advanced services. Amid the stock market boom, securities firms have been improving their MTS services, leading to an even fiercer competition for the grand prize this year.

The evaluation to determine the best among Korea's top-level MTS was conducted in collaboration with the 'ESG Metaverse Development Institute,' a specialized organization for website and mobile app evaluation and certification in Korea. The ESG Metaverse Development Institute assessed five categories: Customer-Friendliness (A), Business (B), Content (C), Design (D), and Technical Excellence (E), based on their patented SM (Smart Mobile)-ABCDE app evaluation model. The final selection of awardees was made through a process where judges reviewed the first-round evaluation data provided by the ESG Metaverse Development Institute and offered their opinions. Moon Hyung-nam, director of the ESG Metaverse Development Institute and professor at Sookmyung Women's University Graduate School of Business, stated, "Securities firms' MTS have rapidly evolved overall, with an increase in services utilizing Artificial Intelligence (AI) and big data, and the gap between MTS platforms is widening depending on their responsiveness."

The Financial Services Commission Chairman's Award, the 'MTS Grand Prize,' was awarded to Mirae Asset Securities. Mirae Asset Securities' 'M-Stock' received well-rounded high marks in customer attraction, business, content, design, and technical excellence. Particularly in the business category, it earned high scores for providing convenience through automatic order reservations. Using big data technology, it offers AI investment information, providing not only domestic but also overseas news and research materials, which contributed to its excellence in the content category by assisting users in securities trading.

Korea Investment & Securities, which ranked second overall, received high marks in customer attraction by enabling menu searches directly from the search bar on the home screen, unlike other securities MTS, eliminating inconvenience. Additionally, users could view the history of recently searched keywords or menus, making it easier to return to previously used services. In the technical excellence category, it offered personalized recommendation services through a robo-advisory service integrated with big data technology.

In the Customer-Friendliness (A) category, NH Investment & Securities took first place. NH Investment & Securities' app 'Namu' features a communication window composed of various options such as 'Chatbot Consultation,' 'Help Desk,' and 'Tax Consultation,' allowing users to choose their preferred method, which was highly rated. The overall menu was neatly organized with frequently used menus for stock trading, and users could conveniently search for desired menus at the top.

In the Business (B) category, KB Securities ranked first, receiving excellent evaluations for the convenience of investment information inquiry and the diversity of order setting functions. It scored highly in the variety and ease of use of core MTS functions related to stock and product trading. Notably, the app 'M-able' attracted attention by allowing users to check their watchlist before logging in, unlike other MTS.

In the Content (C) category, Shinhan Investment Corp. received high marks for the diversity, reliability, and distinctiveness of content for securities trading, as well as practical investment consultation services necessary for trading. Particularly, through features like 'Magic Formula,' 'Targeted Flight,' and 'Experts' Stocks,' it provided stock recommendations and information tailored to customers' investment types, earning positive reviews. Additionally, Hana Securities also scored highly in the content category, tying for first place by offering useful information in various formats that users can refer to when trading securities, such as 'Stock Information,' 'Investment Calendar,' 'Top 10 Popular Trades,' and 'Today's Investment.' Hana Securities' 'OneQ Stock' was praised for enhancing consumer satisfaction by providing diverse information on overseas products, including 'Top 10 Overseas Stocks' and 'Weekly Overseas Stocks.'

Daishin Securities took first place in the Design (D) category. Its menu structure was logical, and the navigation paths were short, making movement convenient, which led to high scores. It was also highly evaluated for securing originality unique to Daishin Securities. Many reviews noted that the app caused low visual fatigue throughout use, and the overall menu structure was not duplicated, reducing the time needed to find desired functions.

Samsung Securities ranked first in the Technical Excellence (E) category. It received high marks for enabling users sensitive to security to use the MTS conveniently and safely. The reason Samsung Securities scored highly in technical excellence was its provision of various services utilizing the latest technologies such as big data. Through menus like 'Samsung Quant 20,' 'My AI Stocks,' and 'US AI PICK5,' it recommended stocks tailored to Samsung Securities users by leveraging big data technology. Samsung Securities also demonstrated exceptional technical prowess in security-related services by offering safe services such as 'Banking Terminal Designation Service,' 'Additional Authentication Service,' 'Delayed Transfer Service,' and 'Overseas IP Blocking Service,' creating an environment where users can trade with peace of mind.

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