South Korea's Financial Services Commission (FSC) and the Korea Exchange (KRX) announced a package of measures to tighten KOSDAQ delisting rules to speed the removal of underperforming and unviable listed companies. The plan combines an intensive delisting management period, tougher delisting triggers including quantitative thresholds and disclosure-related criteria, and a shorter delisting review timeline, with several measures also applied to KOSPI. KRX will establish an intensive delisting management unit led by the head of the KOSDAQ market division and run it from February 2026 to June 2027, initially with four delisting review teams and 20 staff. Delisting standards are being tightened in four areas: the market capitalisation threshold increases are being brought forward, moving from KRW15 billion to KRW20 billion on July 1, 2026 and to KRW30 billion on January 1, 2027, while firms placed on the watch list will need to maintain the threshold for 45 consecutive trading days within a 90-trading-day period or face immediate delisting. A new delisting trigger will apply to micro-cap stocks trading below KRW1,000 per share from July 1, 2026, using the same watch-list and 45-day recovery test and preventing avoidance through reverse stock splits by also considering post-consolidation par value. Capital impairment will be assessed on a semi-annual basis, with mid-year total capital impairment subject to a review process, and the delisting threshold for disclosure violations will fall from 15 to 10 demerit points within a year, with serious and intentional violations subject to immediate delisting. Separately, the KOSDAQ delisting review improvement period will be reduced further to one year and cooperation with the judiciary will be increased to accelerate injunction proceedings; a KRX simulation estimates 100 to 220 KOSDAQ-listed companies could be subject to delisting in 2026, versus a prior forecast of about 50. The intensive delisting management period starts immediately. Measures to streamline the delisting process take effect from April 1, 2026 following an update to KRX rules, while the strengthened delisting standards take effect from July 1, 2026.
South Korea Financial Services Commission 2026-02-12
South Korea Financial Services Commission announces stricter KOSDAQ delisting rules including earlier market cap hikes and a new penny stock trigger
South Korea's Financial Services Commission and the Korea Exchange announced measures to tighten KOSDAQ delisting rules, including stricter delisting triggers and a shorter review timeline, with some measures also applied to KOSPI. The intensive delisting management period begins immediately, with streamlined processes effective April 1, 2026, and strengthened standards from July 1, 2026.