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Regulator seeks to ban 'split listings' by conglomerates starting in July

Published: 16 Apr. 2026, 18:02

The headquarters of the Financial Services Commission inside the government complex in Jongno District, central Seoul [NEWS1]

The country's financial regulator said Thursday that it will take steps to ban “split listings” by conglomerates here starting in July at the earliest.

Split listing, also referred to as duplicate listing, occurs when a core business division is spun off and listed separately from its parent company. It has long been cited as one of the major reasons behind the so-called Korea discount, according to the Financial Services Commission (FSC).

The regulator noted that the listing practice has long undermined shareholder value, saying it will “in principle” ban the practice.

A ban may help improve the market value of certain companies that have already been listed, it argued.

FSC Chairman Lee Eog-weon insisted that such a practice should be banned unless it creates “new value” and “equal benefits” for all shareholders.

“We will assess how duplicate listings affect shareholders and draw up measures to protect them,” he said in a seminar in Seoul.

Major battery maker LG Energy Solution's market debut in 2022 stirred controversy over the split listing practice.

LG Energy Solution was spun off from leading chemicals maker LG Chem to ride the EV craze, which then caused a prolonged slump for its parent company.

Yonhap