A stock ticker at Hana Bank headquarters in central Seoul shows the benchmark KOSPI trading at 6,759.62 during the session, Monday. Yonhap
Lee can’t help but glance at stock prices on his smartphone whenever he finds a spare moment at his job at a dental lab.
“Rather than just relying on my paycheck, I want to actually make some money while the market is soaring. Everyone else is doing it, so I figure I should get in too,” said the 62-year-old technician.
He recently ramped up his bets on local stocks as the benchmark KOSPI extended its record-breaking rally. Already feeling pressure to secure enough savings for retirement, Lee was drawn into a more aggressive investment strategy by the market surge.
But his investments are not free from risk. His home in Gyeonggi Province is financed through a long-term mortgage, and he is also supporting his daughter’s cello studies in Germany, leaving him effectively investing on borrowed money.
Lee is part of a growing shift among Koreans in their 50s and 60s, a generation traditionally known for conservative investment preferences centered on fixed deposits and real estate. People in this age group are now embracing higher-risk strategies, including leveraged stock investments funded through debt.
According to data from the Financial Supervisory Service, balances held by investors aged 50 and older at the nation’s top 10 brokerages exceeded 60 percent of the entire 27.2 trillion won ($18.5 billion) margin loan balance in the first quarter of this year — more than double the amount from a year earlier. Margin loans allow investors to borrow money from brokerages using their existing stock holdings as collateral.
Outstanding balances from overdraft accounts among older borrowers at the country’s five biggest banks and card loans from eight major credit card companies also rose by more than 3 trillion won in early 2026 compared with the end of 2024.
Market analysts see this as a notable shift. A growing number of middle-aged and older Koreans, who traditionally borrowed primarily for living expenses or post-retirement business needs, are now leveraging their borrowing capacity to chase stock market gains, mirroring speculative behavior seen among younger investors — but often with larger sums at stake.
As KOSPI continues soaring past historic thresholds, many older investors have been swept up by a potent mix of worry that they may miss out on potential gains and deepening anxiety over inadequate retirement preparation.
Source: Korea Times News
