Net assets doubled in 226 days after crossing 100 trillion won last October; KODEX holds roughly 40% of Korea's ETF market
By Jung Yoon-hee, The Herald Business
Samsung Asset Management announced Sunday that its KODEX exchange-traded fund lineup has become the first in Korea's asset management industry to surpass 200 trillion won ($133 billion) in net assets.
Total net assets in the KODEX ETF range stood at 201.46 trillion won ($134 billion) as of May 29, the company said. That marks a doubling in just 226 days since the lineup crossed the 100 trillion won ($66.5 billion) threshold on Oct. 15 last year — a milestone that makes Samsung Asset Management the No. 1 ETF manager in both Korea and Asia, excluding Japan, according to data provider ETFGI.
The KODEX lineup now spans 236 ETFs and commands roughly 40% of the domestic ETF market. As Korean stocks repeatedly set record highs, demand surged across domestic and U.S. benchmark index funds, thematic products, monthly-distribution funds, and leveraged and inverse products, driving a sharp increase in inflows.
Samsung Asset Management attributed the 200 trillion won milestone largely to sustained buying by retail investors. Of the 47.7 trillion won ($31.7 billion) that retail investors poured into ETFs since the start of this year, 43 percent — or 20.6 trillion won ($13.7 billion) — flowed into KODEX products. KODEX 200, Korea's first ETF, attracted 2.5 trillion won ($1.66 billion) in retail inflows this year, making it the top ETF by net retail purchases so far in 2026.
Returns have also been strong. KODEX 200 has gained 122.9 percent since the start of the year, while KODEX Leverage has surged 326.8 percent. KODEX Semiconductor returned 162.9 percent and KODEX Semiconductor Leverage soared 450.0 percent, with KODEX AI Semiconductor TOP2 Plus posting a 200.3 percent gain. Among power-sector products, KODEX AI Power Core Equipment rose 107.2 percent and KODEX US AI Power Core Infrastructure climbed 56.4 percent.
New product launches have also performed well. Since crossing the 100 trillion won mark, Samsung Asset Management has listed 17 new ETFs — more than any other firm in the industry. Thirteen of those products have already grown their net assets beyond 100 billion won ($66.5 million), achieving early-stage scale. KODEX Samsung Electronics SK Hynix Bond Mixed 50 surpassed 1 trillion won ($665 million) in net assets. Anticipation over a potential SpaceX listing helped KODEX US Space & Aerospace top 800 billion won ($532 million), and KODEX US AI Optical Network exceeded 500 billion won ($333 million).
KODEX already holds more ETFs in the "1 trillion won club" than any other manager in the industry — 37 in total — and has expanded its roster of products in the "5 trillion won club" to 10.
Samsung Asset Management continues to roll out products tailored to investor demand. Most recently, it launched two single-stock leveraged ETFs: KODEX Samsung Electronics Single Stock Leverage and KODEX SK Hynix Single Stock Leverage.
"We worked to provide the best solutions for retail, foreign and institutional investors to access domestic and overseas investment opportunities quickly and easily, and that effort allowed KODEX ETF to set the historic milestone of 200 trillion won in net assets," the company said. "Going forward, we will continue to manage listed ETFs with rigor and safety, supply innovative products, and contribute to growing the wealth of the Korean public and the development of Korea's capital markets."
yuni@heraldcorp.com
