Original｜Odaily Planet Daily (@OdailyChina)
Author｜Wenser (@wenser2010)
On June 16, the trending topic "Korean girls cheer for the arrival of the golden age for humanity" went viral on the internet. Three days later, the KOSPI index of the Korean stock market hit an intraday historical high of 9385 points, seemingly validating the post's prophecy of a golden age.
However, what arrived before "10,000 points" was an epic crash.
In the past month, the entire Korean market experienced trading halts (suspension of all trading) 4 times cumulatively, all due to downward halts; the KOSPI market triggered the KOSPI circuit breaker mechanism 38 times (suspending programmed trading), while the KOSDAQ (venture board) market triggered the KOSDAQ circuit breaker mechanism 22 times, far exceeding the record for the entire year during the 2008 financial crisis.
The KOSPI index has fallen by as much as 32% from its historical peak, and the extreme crash has triggered a wave of deleveraging.
As of mid-July, the total scale of forced liquidations in Korea for the month has reached 344.2 billion won; over 1.2 million leveraged retail investor accounts in the entire market have hit the margin call threshold, with about 320,000 to 360,000 accounts being fully liquidated by brokerage firms, equivalent to 1 in every 30 adults in Korea (about 3.4%) facing liquidation risks; the balance of retail investor margin deposits has evaporated by nearly 30 trillion won since the end of June, dropping to 107.1 trillion won, the lowest level since June 2020.
Volatility continues, and behind the repeated halts are countless tragic stories of Korean retail investors cutting losses, leveraged liquidations, and financial ruin.
Artist Seo Dong-joo trapped at "259th floor" by SK Hynix
On July 13, Korean artist Seo Dong-joo revealed on her YouTube channel “Money Trap” that she bought SK Hynix at a high of 2.59 million won; as the stock price fell to 1.84 million won, she humorously stated that she felt “trapped on the 259th floor as a Korean ant.”
When discussing her outlook for the market, Seo Dong-joo said: “I think I should wait and see a little longer. Although I say this, I am actually really anxious inside; sometimes I can't help but shout and scream while watching the continuously decreasing numbers on my phone screen.”
In this wave of crashes, Seo Dong-joo's situation is not an isolated case.
Video blogger “Lalar” posted a meme “Someone is also on the 280th floor,” humorously revealing that he bought SK Hynix at 2.8 million won and is trapped——his account lost 44% last month (2.294 million won), and continued to decline this month. Korean comedian Miha also revealed that she once lost 100 million won from stock trading.
The continuously falling Korean stock market has made the “stock price floor meme” go viral on Instagram and short video platforms, becoming a highly infectious self-deprecating emotional material among young people in Korea.
Retired soldier Lee Seung-ho: leveraged to the max, lost 300 million won in one month
A South Korean retired soldier named Lee Seung-ho bet all his savings in this stock market frenzy and experienced a fall from heaven to hell.
At 24 years old, Lee Seung-ho accumulated a capital of 20 million won during his military service and, riding the wave of the stock market, made a risky leveraged purchase of a single stock, whose market value once soared to 300 million won, creating a “15-fold wealth miracle.”
“We live in an era where we cannot buy property assets, so stock investment has become my only hope for a turnaround.” He admitted that a regular apartment in Seoul is equivalent to the income of a young person saving without eating or drinking for 14 years. Young people in Korea are excluded from traditional asset accumulation pathways; high-leverage investment is the only way to bridge the wealth gap.
However, as the tide recedes, the crash of a single stock not only wiped out 280 million won in unrealized profits but also turned that hard-earned principal into nothing. Even more devastating, Lee Seung-ho had also taken out credit loans and used leveraged products to expand his investment scale, ultimately pushing himself towards the abyss.
A gambler-like reversal ended in an even more thorough zeroing out. Among Koreans relying on stock trading through credit loans and other leveraged assets, Lee Seung-ho is not an isolated case.
According to data from the South Korean financial sector WinnersTV), who had repeatedly incited fans to gamble their entire investments during paid live streams. “Even if I have to sell my underwear, I will buy this stock,” “Learn to flexibly use financing bonds,” and even encouraged fans to sell their cars and gold, betting all on semiconductor stock leverage products.
Many followers were forcibly liquidated due to the market downturn, losing everything. According to Busan police investigations, the assailant was a subscriber to his channel, who suffered significant losses after trusting his stock recommendations and felt that his life was ruined, leading him to attack. The blogger was later referred to prosecutors on suspicion of being an “unlicensed investment advisor.”
A farce of paid stock recommendations ended in bloodshed.
Forty-year-old British investor loses 400 million won in Korean stocks
In this frenzied Korean stock investment feast, there are also many foreign investors participating.
Data from the Korean exchange shows that from July 20 to 23, foreign capital net bought Korean stocks for four consecutive trading days, with a cumulative net buy of 55.74 trillion won (approximately 3.8 billion USD), marking the first consecutive four-day net inflow since April. On July 22 alone, foreign investors net bought 26.211 trillion won (nearly 1.8 billion USD) in the Korean main market, setting a two-month high.
According to shares from an X platform blogger, a man in his forties from the UK lost about 400 million won (approximately 274,000 USD) due to the recent significant drop in Korean stocks.
Due to the loss of principal, this man is currently in extreme anxiety. According to him: “I just want to sell all my holdings now and live peacefully.”
Unfortunately, all experiences and lessons in the stock market come at the cost of real money; and once faced with a severe market rebound after liquidating holdings, it is believed that no one can maintain their rationality under such circumstances, and they may regret their trading decisions even more.
Korean stock investment "master" sees assets shrink by 1.5 billion won in two months
Blogger “President Jin” shared a real story of a retail investor who fell from grace.
This investor entered the market relatively early, peaking at 2 billion won (approximately 1.36 million USD) during last year's bull market. People around him called him "master," saying he was very talented, and followed in his footsteps to invest, enjoying a moment of glory. But just two months later, amidst the stock market correction, 1.5 billion won vanished.
Interestingly, his psychological trajectory is astonishingly consistent with that of every cryptocurrency player and seasoned market participant:
“This is just a correction.”
“This is actually a great buying opportunity.”
“If I buy a little more, my average cost will drop significantly.”
“As long as I hold on a little longer, it will definitely be fine.”
As stock god Warren Buffett said: “Only when the tide goes out do you discover who’s been swimming naked.”
Many people might interpret the “water” here as the entire market, but in reality, the “water” is more about the market's liquidity. When liquidity is excessive, everyone looks like a stock god, but high returns don’t necessarily represent investment skill; sometimes it’s just a result of taking on greater risks.
When the Korean stock market falls into a liquidity crisis due to over-leveraging, an imbalanced market structure, a high ratio of retail loans, interest rate hikes by the central bank, changes in brokerage requirements, and other reasons, those lacking in risk management are doomed to be swept into the abyss by the crashing waves.
New retail investors continue to enter the market
Despite the frequent crashes in the Korean stock market and numerous liquidations, it hasn’t deterred the enthusiasm of newcomers. The stories of the following two young investors are the best illustrations.
30-something office worker Kim Hae-young from Seoul participated in stock investments for the first time after getting a deposit back from her apartment lease last year, “without doing any investment research at all, just instinctively picking SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics.” When asked about her reasons, shequickly responded: “Isn't Samsung the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Korea? Isn't that choice obvious?”
From September last year, stock prices for Samsung and SK Hynix soared; she originally planned to “make a profit of 50,000 won (about 33 USD) and then cash out,” which would allow her to escape the torture of being distracted by stock prices. But watching the continuously rising prices, she chose to increase her holdings and decided to hold these two stocks long-term in February this year. Currently, the market value of both stocks has more than doubled.
Kim Hae-young admitted: “I know I am at risk of being confused by rising or falling prices; now I just want to put aside my greed and approach it steadily.” According to her plans, she may have the chance to bear the down payment for a house by herself in the future or prepare early for retirement.
Jin Do-hyun from an AI startup in Seoul shares a similar sentiment. As a semi-insider in the semiconductor industry, Jin Do-hyun has always recognized the market value of Korean blue-chip stocks; he entered the market influenced by this wave of bull market and optimistic profit expectations, thinking that “having cash in hand during this wave feels like a waste of resources.”
The Blue House creates a massive bull market in Korean stocks
The Korean stock market has completely boiled over, and the data is the best proof: the total number of Korean stock investors soared from 6 million in 2019 to 14.5 million by the end of 2025; in May 2026, the number of active trading accounts reached 105 million (an increase of 6.93 million compared to the end of last year), approximately double the total population of Korea; and the KOSPI index has nearly doubled, leading all major global indices.
All of this is inseparable from the new South Korean President Lee Jae-myung, who took office last year.
At the beginning of his term, he boldly promised to completely change Korea's image as an “investment desert” and eliminate the negative impression of the “Korea Discount.” (Odaily Planet Daily Note: The term Korea Discount refers to the phenomenon where South Korean stocks are valued lower than similar stocks globally. Many South Korean listed companies have strong cash flows and profitability but have stock prices below book value and valuations significantly lower than their overseas counterparts. This is particularly evident in the price comparison of SK Hynix between the Korean and US stock markets.)
Additionally, Lee Jae-myung publicly promised to raise the KOSPI index to 5000 points—at that time, the index was only 2800 points, and this goal was achieved this January. Although the KOSPI index has since fallen nearly 30% from its historical high, it has still risen by 55.5% year-to-date, far surpassing all other major global capital market indices.
After taking office, to reduce South Koreans' dependency on real estate investments, the Lee Jae-myung government implemented a series of stock market reform measures, including “allowing minority shareholders to concentrate their voting rights on supported candidates during board member elections,” trying to make the stock market a second reservoir.
Of course, Lee Jae-myung's approach is not without merit. As Asia's fourth-largest real estate market, the Korean real estate industry has become one of the most expensive real estate markets globally. Such high property prices have given many young Koreans more valid reasons to “leverage stock trading” and “borrow to invest in stocks.” However, the sharply volatile market has ultimately provided them with a bloody lesson in investment.
Whether the KOSPI can return to its peak and whether the bull market can continue is unpredictable, but it is certain that this trend born of policy, fueled by leverage, and enveloped by emotion is far from unique to Korea. From Wall Street to Tokyo to Seoul, every generation of young people has bet on the future in their era's “gamble” and has paid for some grand narrative. The presence of young people in Korea is just another vivid imprint in the long river of history—they will not be the first, nor will they be the last.
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