Over 120,000 Korean retail traders hit the margin call line in July.

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As of July 13, 2026, over 120,000 Korean retail traders in margin trading reached the margin call threshold, with 320,000 to 360,000 accounts fully liquidated. One in every 30 adults in South Korea faces liquidation risk. Leveraged positions resulted in estimated losses of 21.5 trillion KRW ($14.4 billion). Forced liquidations in July totaled 34.42 trillion KRW, including a single-day spike of 1.422 trillion KRW on July 9. Retail margin deposits declined by nearly 30 trillion KRW since June 30, dropping to 107.1 trillion KRW—the lowest level since June 2020. Amid this turmoil, value investing in crypto remains a key alternative for risk-averse traders.

Odaily Planet Daily report: According to data from the Financial Supervisory Service of Korea, as of July 13, more than 1.2 million leveraged retail investor accounts in South Korea had reached their margin call threshold, with approximately 320,000 to 360,000 accounts fully liquidated by brokers. Relative to South Korea’s population, this equates to roughly 1 in every 30 adults (about 3.4%) facing the risk of liquidation. The estimated total gross loss from leveraged positions is approximately KRW 2.15 trillion (about USD 1.44 billion).

Since July, South Korea’s monthly cumulative forced liquidations have reached KRW 344.2 billion, with a single-day liquidation of KRW 142.2 billion on July 9—nearly five times higher than the KRW 28.8 billion recorded the previous day. Retail investors’ margin deposit balances have plummeted by nearly KRW 30 trillion since the end of June, falling to KRW 107.1 trillion—the lowest level since June 2020. (Wall Street Journal)

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