The Korea Exchange (KRX) reviewed its market oversight framework and investor protection measures in response to rising stock market volatility and the spreading use of artificial intelligence.
The exchange said on the 1st that it held the 2026 Sound Stock Market Forum to discuss AI's impact on capital markets and ways to improve the current market alert system.
In opening remarks, Market Oversight Commission Chairman Kim Hong-sik said that with a more active stock market coinciding with greater volatility, oversight methods need to be reviewed and reinforced to maintain fair market order. "Through this forum, I hope we can survey the influence and potential uses of AI technology in capital markets and diagnose the current market alert system, so that we can discuss reasonable market oversight and stronger investor protection suited to a changing stock market environment," Kim said.
Park Min-woo, a standing member of the Securities and Futures Commission, said investor trust must underpin any effort to turn changes in the capital market environment into a competitive advantage. He called for continued cooperation among market participants, including related institutions, the industry and academia, alongside government policy support.
Hwang Keun-ho, a professor at the KAIST College of Business, delivered the first presentation and said AI can improve efficiency across capital markets, from information analysis to trade execution, and can also contribute to investor protection. He noted, however, that AI may create new risks, making governance of AI models and monitoring of their use necessary.
In the second presentation, Nam Gil-nam, a senior research fellow at the Korea Capital Market Institute, examined the achievements and challenges of the market alert system. Empirical analysis showed the system has faithfully served to warn investors in advance of corporate distress and to cool overheated trading, he said. But he noted that alerts and trading restrictions are applied more broadly in Korea than overseas, and recommended seeking a balance between investor protection and market autonomy.
A panel discussion followed on market oversight and investor protection, with participants including Yang Ki-jin, a professor at Jeonbuk National University; Roh Dong-gil, a research fellow at Shinhan Securities; Hong Moon-ki, an attorney at Yulchon LLC; Lee Jeong-min, a research fellow at the Korea Financial Consumer Protection Foundation; Choi Jin-young, a deputy head of division at KRX; and Kim Hae-sung, a research fellow at KRX.
