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2026-07-17 14:50:12
[Over 1.2 Million Retail Investor Accounts in South Korea Trigger Margin Calls, with Approximately 320,000 to 360,000 Accounts Forced to Liquidate] ⑴ Ioannis Blekos, Managing Director of Goldman Sachs' Trading Department, pointed out that as of July 13, over 1.2 million leveraged margin accounts held by retail investors in the South Korean market had triggered margin calls, and approximately 320,000 to 360,000 accounts had been forcibly liquidated by brokerages. South Korea has a population of approximately 35.7 million aged 15 to 64, which suggests that roughly one in every 30 working-age individuals has received a margin call notice. ⑵ Reports indicate that the margin balance of retail brokerage accounts has decreased by approximately 30 trillion won, reaching its lowest level since February 20th of this year. The margin call rate rose to around 5% last Friday and is expected to rise further as the sell-off in the semiconductor sector intensifies. Thursday's fund flow data showed that foreign and domestic institutional investors were already withdrawing. The South Korean stock market was closed on Friday due to a public holiday.
