Over 1.16 million South Korean investors completed basic leveraged ETF education in H1 2026, a 19-fold increase from the prior year's 60,972. Financial Investment Association data submitted to lawmaker Kang Myung-gu showed ₩13.4 trillion flowed into 16 Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix single-stock leveraged products launched May 27, with SK Hynix attracting ₩8.5456 trillion and Samsung Electronics ₩4.7211 trillion. The surge followed policy enabling single-stock leveraged products as retail investors sought amplified semiconductor stock returns. Products lost 40-50% from May 27 to July 16 as underlying stocks fell and KOSPI's July intraday volatility hit 6.75%, the highest since Korea Exchange began tracking in 1987.
Leveraged ETF Education Completions Surged 19-Fold in H1 2026
The Financial Investment Association reported 1,162,751 basic leveraged ETF education completions from January to June 2026, compared to 60,972 in the same period of 2025. The figure also exceeded 2025's full-year total of 205,911 by sixfold. Advanced education for single-stock leveraged products, introduced in April, recorded 4,832 completions in April, 401,001 in May, and 284,376 in June, totaling 690,209 cumulative completions through July 13.
By age group from April to July 13, investors in their 40s led with 210,745 completions, followed by those in their 50s (189,308), 30s (176,488), 20s (82,172), 60s (70,339), 70s (10,499), and 80s (1,353). Minors requiring parental consent accounted for 5,596 completions.
SK Hynix Products Drew ₩8.5 Trillion, Samsung Electronics ₩4.7 Trillion
From May 27 to July 16, six SK Hynix single-stock leveraged products attracted ₩8.5456 trillion in net inflows, while five Samsung Electronics leveraged products drew ₩4.7211 trillion. Two inverse products betting on stock declines received ₩146.6 billion combined.
KODEX SK Hynix single-stock leverage led with ₩4.9991 trillion in retail net purchases, followed by TIGER SK Hynix single-stock leverage (₩3.4461 trillion), KODEX Samsung Electronics single-stock leverage (₩3.0757 trillion), TIGER Samsung Electronics single-stock leverage (₩1.8916 trillion), SOL SK Hynix futures single-stock inverse 2X (₩149.3 billion), and ACE SK Hynix single-stock leverage (₩98.6 billion).
KODEX SK Hynix Leverage ETF Fell 47.5% from May 27 to July 16
KODEX SK Hynix single-stock leverage fell from ₩27,775 to ₩14,585 during the period, a 47.5% decline exceeding double SK Hynix's 17.9% drop. KODEX Samsung Electronics single-stock leverage fell 41.7% as Samsung Electronics declined 16.9%.
Inverse products SOL SK Hynix futures single-stock inverse 2X and PLUS Samsung Electronics futures single-stock inverse 2X fell 31.1% and 8.9% respectively. Retail investors purchased ₩10.704 trillion of Samsung Electronics and ₩6.2424 trillion of SK Hynix from July 1 to July 16, ranking the stocks first and second in net purchases.
KOSPI July Intraday Volatility Hit 6.75%, Highest Since 1987
The Korea Exchange reported KOSPI's average intraday volatility from July 1 to July 16 reached 6.75%, the highest since the exchange began compiling statistics in 1987. The figure surpassed the previous record of 6.11% in October 2008 during the financial crisis and 5.37% in December 1997 during the Asian financial crisis.
Intraday volatility measures the difference between daily high and low prices divided by their average. July's 6.75% indicates the index moved an average of 3.37% above and below its midpoint each day. Three of the top 10 monthly intraday volatility readings in the past 20 years occurred in 2026: July (6.75%), June (5.02%), and May (4.02%).
KOSPI recorded intraday volatility exceeding 10% on nine occasions in its history, with three occurring in 2026: March 4 (11.42%), June 23 (11.18%), and July 13 (10.42%). The KOSPI 200 volatility index (VKOSPI) closed at 87.14 on July 16 and reached a record high of 96.94 on June 29, the highest since the exchange began publishing the index in April 2009.
Lee Jae-won, researcher at Yuanta Securities, stated: "Recently, investors have shown a tendency to panic-sell as soon as even a small justification arises. Leveraged ETF-driven volatility and the absence of net buying entities have caused the index to plunge to valuations lower than during the financial crisis."
Politicians Criticized Policy, Called for National Assembly Investigation
People Power Party lawmaker Park Soo-young stated: "The Lee Jae-myung administration pushed for the launch of 'Samjeon-nix' (Samsung Electronics + Hynix) single-stock products to boost stock prices before local elections, and as a result, the stock market fluctuated like a casino. In July alone, ₩7 trillion poured into Samjeon-nix single-stock ETFs, returns were cut in half, and only retail investors shed tears of blood."
People Power Party lawmaker Na Kyung-won said: "The gambling-like leveraged ETFs caused massive losses to the retirement funds of the elderly, the seed money of young people, and the investment funds of 14 million retail investors, yet there is no accountability for policy failure and no apology."
Former People Power Party lawmaker Yoo Seung-min stated: "In a market where Samjeon-nix accounts for more than 50% of market capitalization, someone introduced high-risk leveraged products that cannot even be called ETFs — we must hold accountable who did this and for what purpose." Yoo called for a National Assembly investigation.
FAQ
Q: How many South Korean investors completed leveraged ETF education in H1 2026?
A: 1,162,751 investors completed basic leveraged ETF education from January to June 2026, a 19-fold increase from 60,972 completions in H1 2025, according to Financial Investment Association data submitted to lawmaker Kang Myung-gu.
Q: How much capital flowed into Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix leveraged products from May 27 to July 16?
A: ₩13.4 trillion in net inflows entered 16 Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix single-stock leveraged and inverse products during the period, with SK Hynix products attracting ₩8.5456 trillion and Samsung Electronics products drawing ₩4.7211 trillion.
Q: What was KOSPI's intraday volatility in July 2026?
A: KOSPI's average intraday volatility from July 1 to July 16 reached 6.75%, the highest level since the Korea Exchange began tracking the metric in 1987, surpassing the previous record of 6.11% set in October 2008.
