Siebert Financial Teams Up With Kakao Pay Securities to Bring South Korean Stocks Closer to U.S. Investors
Siebert Financial has partnered with Kakao Pay Securities in a move that could reshape how investors in the U.S. access one of Asia's largest stock markets.
July 27 2026, Published 12:00 p.m. ET
American investors may soon have an easier way to buy South Korean stocks—and they might not have to wait for the Seoul stock market to open.
Siebert Financial has partnered with Kakao Pay Securities in a move that could reshape how investors in the U.S. access one of Asia's largest stock markets. The companies plan to develop a platform that would eventually allow Siebert clients to trade South Korean equities while also exploring tokenized versions of those stocks that could be available beyond traditional market hours.
The partnership pairs two companies with complementary strengths. Siebert brings decades of brokerage experience and access to U.S. markets, while Kakao Pay Securities contributes one of South Korea's largest digital investing platforms, serving roughly 9 million stock accounts.
Together, they're building what they call the K-Stock Global Gateway—an initiative designed to make investing across the Pacific feel a lot less complicated.
The first phase of the project is expected to launch during the first half of 2027, giving Siebert customers a direct connection to South Korean stocks. Looking ahead, the companies also plan to explore tokenization, a technology that could eventually allow investors to buy and sell Korean equities outside of normal exchange hours while potentially speeding up settlement times.
For Siebert CEO John J. Gebbia, the partnership represents much more than adding another international market to the firm's platform.
"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, Chief Executive Officer of Siebert Financial.
"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."
Kakao Pay Securities sees the collaboration as a way to introduce more global investors to Korean companies while leveraging Siebert's established presence in the United States.
"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.," said Simon Shin, Chief Executive Officer of Kakao Pay Securities.
The companies say their ambitions extend beyond stock trading. Future plans include exploring additional cross-border financial products, investor education tools, and technologies such as real-time, or T+0, settlement, which could allow investors to receive proceeds from completed trades much faster than they do today.
Any new products developed through the partnership will still need to meet regulatory requirements in both the United States and South Korea before they become available to investors.