[Alpha Biz= Reporter Kim Sangjin] On October 17, Lee Bok-hyun, head of South Korea's Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), criticized Naver Financial for attempting to offer stock trading connectivity services without obtaining a securities license.

During a National Assembly audit session, Lee emphasized that if Naver Financial intends to perform functions similar to securities firms, it should formally apply for the appropriate securities-related licenses. He stated, "If there is an intent to engage in activities similar to those of a securities firm, it is proper to obtain the necessary license."

Naver Financial has been preparing a service that allows users to connect to domestic securities firms’ web trading systems (WTS) with a single click through its Naver Pay securities page. The company initially planned to report this as an outsourced service rather than going through the process of obtaining a brokerage license from financial authorities, raising concerns about regulatory evasion.

Lee noted that any substantial activity related to financial investment should be appropriately licensed. He also expressed the FSS’s commitment to closely monitor any potential issues related to market dominance or the outsourcing of services without proper authorization.

Kang Min-kook, a lawmaker from the ruling People Power Party, further criticized Naver Financial's approach, pointing out that unlike competitors such as Kakao and Toss, which have obtained banking, securities, and insurance licenses, Naver is attempting to offer financial services indirectly without proper regulation. He argued that this represents an attempt to bypass financial regulations.

 

 

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