Paper securities holders advised to claim e-securities
The Korea Securities Depository (KSD) advised holders of paper securities certificates for shares and bonds to visit KSD, KEB Hana Bank or KB Kookmin Bank to retain their validity, Tuesday, after the electronic securities (e-securities) system took effect Sept. 16.
The recommendation follows the implementation of the new system whereby securities certificates are no longer issued in physical form and buyers’ rights are recorded on an electronic register.
The KSD, led by CEO Lee Byung-rhae, said that holders of the paper securities must visit KSD, KEB Hana Bank or KB Kookmin Bank to identify how many shares they can claim and have paper securities certificates registered at any brokerage of their choice to sell, buy or receive dividends for.
Information on which shares are held by which one of the three is available on the KSD website.
“We have notified many holders to claim their right to the securities long before the new system took effect, but still a lot of people have yet to take the necessary steps. They must visit one of the three entities with identification,” a KSD official said. The KSD said the new system will not only allow investors to acquire, transfer and exercise their rights electronically but also advance Korea’s financial market and eliminate risks that have long accompanied the use of physical securities.
Korea is the 34th country to implement an e-securities system among the 36 member nations of the economically advanced Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
It said the new system will streamline stock issuance procedures, helping save around 87 billion won ($74 million) in the next five years.