[Alpha Biz= Paul Lee] As South Korea’s stock market reaches record highs, demand for leveraged investing, or “debt investing,” has surged, prompting several securities firms to temporarily suspend stock-backed loans due to exhausted credit limits.
DB Securities recently announced the halt, citing increased usage that reached its credit ceiling. Previously, KB Securities and Daol Investment & Securities had also paused such services temporarily.
Stock-backed loans allow investors to borrow funds using securities in their brokerage accounts as collateral. While total credit lines generally scale with a firm’s capital, rising leveraged trading has pushed some firms to their limits.
Despite temporary suspensions at certain firms, the overall stock-backed loan market continues to expand, aided by increased capital at major firms. Combined outstanding credit for margin loans and securities-backed loans rose from 40.6 trillion won in May 2025 to 52.2 trillion won by December 30, 2025.
Alphabiz Reporter Paul Lee(hoondork1977@alphabiz.co.kr)
