Siebert Financial Teams with Kakao Pay Securities on Korean Stock Platform
American brokerage firm Siebert Financial Corp. and South Korean fintech Kakao Pay Securities will jointly build a platform giving U.S. investors a direct route into the Korean stock market, the companies said Thursday, with tokenized shares and around-the-clock trading among the ideas under review.
The venture, called the K-Stock Global Gateway, is expected to roll out its first phase in the first half of 2027. It pairs Kakao Pay Securities’ mobile-first investing technology and roughly 9 million stock accounts in South Korea with Siebert’s U.S. brokerage operations and market access.
A key question the partners intend to study is whether converting Korean shares into digital tokens could let Americans trade them when Seoul’s exchanges are closed. Because of the 13- to 14-hour time gap between the two countries, Korean market hours fall overnight for most U.S. investors. The firms believe tokenization might bridge that gap while also streamlining cross-border transactions.
They also plan to explore whether tokenized securities could enable same-day, or T+0, settlement, which would put money from completed sales in investors’ hands faster than conventional settlement cycles allow.
“Kakao Pay Securities choosing Siebert as its U.S. partner is a strong validation of the financial infrastructure we are providing,” said John J. Gebbia, Siebert Financial’s chief executive. “Our goal is to help remove the barriers between global markets. Tokenization is an important first opportunity, but we see the potential of this partnership going much further. By combining Siebert’s U.S. infrastructure with Kakao Pay Securities’ technology, scale and leadership in South Korea, we can create new ways for investors in both markets to access financial products and opportunities that were previously difficult to reach.”
Simon Shin, chief executive of Kakao Pay Securities, said: “We want to build a global gateway for K-shares by combining Kakao Pay Securities’ technology, content, and community capabilities with Siebert’s access to the U.S.”
The initial focus will be Korean stock trading for Siebert customers, but the companies said they may add other financial products over time. The platform is also slated to carry educational material aimed at familiarizing American investors with Korean companies and how the country’s equity markets operate. Both firms cautioned that anything launched under the partnership must comply with securities regulations and investor-protection rules in the U.S. and South Korea.
Siebert Financial, established in 1967, offers brokerage, wealth management and investment banking services through its subsidiaries. It is named for founder Muriel Siebert, who in 1967 became the first woman to hold a seat on the New York Stock Exchange.