South Korea slaps fines on global banks for short-selling violations

South Korea’s financial regulator, the Financial Services Commission (FSC), has announced plans to impose fines on two global investment banks for engaging in naked short-selling transactions. The FSC did not disclose the names of the banks. South Korea has been investigating global investment banks to crack down on illegal short-selling practices in its stock market. In December, the FSC announced fines of 26.5 billion won ($20.2 million) for two global investment banks and one local brokerage for naked short-selling. The country implemented a full ban on short-selling in November, which will stay in place until the end of June 2024.