The Korea Financial Investment Association said on the 23rd that trading of public offering fund listing classes will begin on the Korea Exchange (KRX) KOSPI market on the 27th. With two products, "Daishin KOSPI200 Index" and "Eugene Champion Mid- to Short-term Credit," they can be bought and sold as easily as stocks or exchange-traded funds (ETF).
There are 27 securities firms where listing-class transactions are available. Starting on the first day, the 27th, trading will be possible at Kyobo Securities, DAOL Investment & Securities, Daishin Securities Co., DB Securities, DS Investment & Securities, Meritz Securities, Mirae Asset Securities, BOOKOOK Securities, BNK Investment & Securities, Samsung Securities, Sangsangin Investment & Securities, Shinyoung Securities, Shinhan Investment & Securities, IBK Securities, iM Securities, SK Securities, NH Investment & Securities, LS Securities, Woori Investment & Securities, Yuanta Securities Korea, EUGENE INVESTMENT & SECURITIES, KB Securities, Hana Securities, Hanyang Securities, Korea Investment & Securities, and Hyundai Motor Securities. At Kiwoom Securities, trading will be available starting Nov. 7.
Public offering funds allow small, diversified investment and are strongly protective of investors due to strict public regulation, but their scale has shrunk because redemptions and other processes are inconvenient. In response, listing classes were created to make buying and selling as convenient as ETFs while lowering the expense burden.
Seo Yu-seok, head of the Korea Financial Investment Association, said, "The public offering fund listing class is the first case of integrating an over-the-counter and on-exchange trading framework, so now investors can refer in advance to past management performance, such as whether it achieved returns exceeding the index, and can buy and sell in the securities market quickly and at low cost at their desired time." He added, "Since fund listing trading is a global trend, listing classes are expected to greatly contribute to enhancing investment convenience and investor protection, and to revitalizing the public offering fund market and boosting international competitiveness."