South Korean Investors Moving From Vietnam Stocks to Tech and Crypto

South Korean investors have been pulling capital out of the Vietnamese stock market and putting it in tech stocks and crypto. The performance of the latter two has attracted the country’s retail investors, who are seeking strong profits.

Retail investors from South Korea have been exiting from the Vietnamese stock market, instead, putting their capital into cryptocurrency and tech stocks, Bloomberg reports. Data from the Korea Securities Depository shows that $166 million worth of shares has exited the market this year.

Tech stocks like Tesla and cryptocurrencies, especially bitcoin, have grabbed the attention of Korean investors. That’s fairly unsurprising, given the tremendous growth that both Tesla and bitcoin have experienced in 2021. Profit-taking appears to be the foremost priority for these retail investors.

Cryptocurrencies are extremely popular in South Korea, despite the government’s introduction of new regulations. The country has begun introducing new legislation that heavily regulates the market, though it is by no means draconian.

Users have begun flocking to P2P platforms amid all the news of regulation. The government has been cracking down on tax evaders, which is only one tactic in its comprehensive regulation efforts. The country is keen on preventing any misuse of cryptocurrencies, specifically relating to money laundering and investor protection.

Korean investors will have to abide by new crypto regulations

Among the new regulations posted include 20% taxation on the crypto market. This was met with criticism by some, who chided the heavy tax. But, on the whole, it appears that most South Korean citizens are okay with taxing crypto at that rate.

South Korea has also introduced comprehensive regulation for exchanges, requiring them to obtain a license before running operations. Several exchanges have shut down as a result, though the more popular ones have followed the law.

However, some of the legislation remains hanging in the air as authorities debate it. The crypto tax was pushed to 2023 after challenges from the opposition party. The next year will see a lot more discussion from regulators on the crypto market, which should give citizens much more clarity.