KRX to reform commission system

[THE INVESTOR] Korea Exchange plans to revamp its commission fee structure, the country’s bourse operator said on June 23.

KRX will hire an external agency to examine its current commission rate and standards on the imposition of fees and compare it with other major stock exchanges worldwide.

The decision comes as the country’s stock market faces an industrial transition as the exchange seeks to transform itself as a holding firm and financial authority pushes to adopt alternative trading system -- a non-exchange trading venue that matches buyers and sellers to find counterparties for transactions.

Currently, KRX charges transaction fee of 0.23bp of the cash amount traded for stocks and 0.021bp for futures trading.

“KRX’s commission is relatively low compared to other overseas stock exchanges. It has been lowered by 60 percent over the past years,” a KRX official said.

In 2012, the Board of Audit and Inspection of Korea requested the correction of KRX’s commission, saying its rate cut hasn’t been in significant as compared to a massive jump in equity transaction volume. Since 2000, the bourse operator cut its rate four times.

By Park Han-na (hnpark@heraldcorp.com)