South Korea continues crackdown on short selling

A screen displays prices of crypto currencies inside Upbit Lounge in Seoul, South Korea, on Monday, May 20, 2024. Upbit, the South Korean exchange operated by Dunamu Inc., now accounts for almost 5% of overall crypto trading volume globally, up from 1.4% in January 2021, according to CCData. Photographer: SeongJoon Cho/Bloomberg

SEOUL: Since November, South Korea has intensified its crackdown on illegal short selling by institutional investors, uncovering widespread practices among global banks.

In an interim results announcement earlier this month, the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) revealed that all nine banks investigated had engaged in illegal short selling totaling approximately 211.12 billion won in South Korean stocks.