Mobile becoming norm for stock investors

By Yoon Ja-young

With the penetration of smartphones, more stock investors are trading through mobile devices.

According to Korea Exchange, the country’s stock market operator, on average 248.9 million shares changed hands through mobile trading on the main bourse KOSPI every day last year.

That means 27.3 percent of total trading in KOSPI is done through mobiles.

Mobile trading was even more prevalent for investors on the tech-loaded, junior Kosdaq market. On average 364 million shares changed hands through mobile trading every day last year ― 30.1 percent of total trading.

The ratio of mobile trading on the KOSPI was around 2 percent before 2010, but it has been increasing steeply from 3.5 percent in 2010 to nearly 15 percent in 2012 and 21.5 percent in 2014.

It is increasing even more steeply on Kosdaq, where small investors make up a higher portion of traders. The ratio was below 3 percent in the 2000s, but it has been rising each year to more than 30 percent for the first time in 2014.

The Korea Exchange said mobile trading was increasing as more people were using smartphones and tablets.

Amid the transition to mobile trading, securities companies are cutting fees to attract customers. Korea Investment and Securities, for instance, exempts fees for stock transactions for up to five years for customers who subscribe to its “BanKIS Direct” service.

KDB Daewoo Securities also exempts transaction fees for new customers until 2019 and Samsung Securities exempts fees for mobile trading for up to three years.

Other securities companies are also holding promotion events offering trading fees exemption.

“Stock investors now seem to take transaction fee exemption for granted,” an industry analyst said. “It is difficult for the brokerages to raise fees due to competition.”