STOCKS | The Kobeissi Letter Says South Korea’s Leveraged ETF Assets Hit Record $45 Billion

South Korea’s leveraged exchange-traded fund (ETF) assets under management have risen to about $45 billion, a record high, The Kobeissi Letter said in an analysis. According to Odaily, The Kobeissi Letter reported that the figure has increased by more than 800% since early 2026, describing leveraged trading activity in South Korea’s stock market as continuing to intensify. The analysis said leveraged exposure as a share of free-float market capitalization has climbed to about 2.9%, more than tripling from January levels, indicating that tradable shares are being amplified through high leverage. At the single-stock level, a Hong Kong-listed 2x long SK Hynix ETF reportedly grew to about $15 billion, making it the world’s largest single-stock leveraged product, the analysis said. By comparison, The Kobeissi Letter said 2x long ETFs tracking Micron, Nvidia, SanDisk, and Tesla have historically not exceeded $10 billion in size. The analysis added that leverage levels in the South Korean market are at an extreme, with rapidly accumulating risk exposure raising concerns about amplified volatility.