South Korea has launched a 24-hour onshore dollar-won trading system on July 6, 2026, marking a significant milestone in the country's financial market reforms. According to reports from Reuters, JoongAng Ilbo, and Investing.com, the onshore foreign exchange market began operating at 6:00 a.m. local time on Monday (2100 GMT on Sunday) and will remain open continuously until 6:00 a.m. on Saturday. The won traded weaker on Monday, with the USD/KRW pair rising 0.3% after the currency rebounded late last week from its weakest level against the dollar since 2009. Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol described the launch as the "starting point for the won's global leap" during his visit to the foreign exchange dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, accompanied by Kwon Min-soo, deputy governor at the Bank of Korea (BOK). The finance minister emphasized that the launch reflects Korea's confidence in its economic fundamentals, including its strong external soundness and record-breaking current account surplus.
The reform is part of a broader package of changes designed to enhance the convertibility and international appeal of the won, as Seoul continues its push to secure an upgrade from emerging market to developed market status in MSCI's widely tracked equity indices. As reported by Reuters, JoongAng Ilbo, and Investing.com, Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol emphasized that this launch represents a crucial step in the won's international recognition journey. The move aims to attract foreign investors and improve market liquidity, aligning with Seoul's ambition for developed market status in global indices. The round-the-clock trading is the centrepiece of South Korea's years-long effort to improve foreign access to local markets, with the move designed to provide the level of accessibility and convenience in FX trading comparable to advanced markets. The government, the BOK, banks, securities firms and brokerage companies had worked closely together to prepare for round-the-clock trading, with representatives from Hana Bank, exporting companies and foreign exchange traders at overseas branches saying they would actively make use of the new infrastructure to quickly adapt to the new trading environment.
The extended trading hours are expected to make the South Korean currency more accessible to global investors, improving liquidity and enabling participants in different time zones to transact more efficiently. According to Reuters, JoongAng Ilbo, and Investing.com, South Korea has been pursuing a series of financial market reforms in recent years to align its capital markets more closely with global standards. The new system will create opportunities for exporters and importers to manage foreign exchange risk in real time and enable domestic financial institutions to expand their operations. The reform reflects how the economy has evolved to one investing more overseas, making it harder to justify limiting trading to South Korean business hours. Expanding foreign exchange trading hours is expected to improve market efficiency, facilitate participation by overseas investors and support the country's long-term objective of increasing the won's role in international financial markets. The overnight trading session will be supported by designated domestic lenders and international banks registered to participate in the local foreign exchange market, with authorities expecting liquidity to build gradually as more overseas institutions join the market.
The successful implementation of the round-the-clock trading system could strengthen South Korea's credentials as it seeks greater recognition from global index providers and aims to attract higher levels of international investment into its financial markets. As reported by Reuters, JoongAng Ilbo, and Investing.com, the reform is expected to enhance the won's international role and attract more foreign investment, supporting the country's long-term objective of increasing the won's role in international financial markets. This historic launch represents a significant step forward in South Korea's efforts to establish itself as a major player in global financial markets and achieve its goal of securing developed market status in MSCI's widely tracked equity indices. The move addresses MSCI's previous concerns about "the difficulty of converting the won" due to its limited trading hours and infrequent international usage. The government will also proceed as planned with other foreign exchange market reforms, such as the launch of an offshore won settlement system scheduled for January next year. The launch marks another step in Seoul's efforts to modernize its capital markets, with the KOSPI climbing more than 30% this year, making it one of Asia's best-performing major equity markets, led by AI-driven gains in heavyweight chipmakers and optimism over corporate governance reforms.
On the first day of 24-hour trading, the won-dollar exchange rate started trading at 1,527.70 won as of 6:11 a.m., representing a 2.1 won increase from the previous day. According to Reuters, spot foreign exchange brokers such as Seoul Money Brokerage will provide a time-weighted average price (TWAP) at the top of each hour while the foreign exchange market is open. The expanded trading hours fill a previous gap where currencies other than the dollar could only be traded from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., while the new system allows for continuous dollar-won trading from 2 a.m. to 9 a.m. This comprehensive reform addresses the historical limitation that Korea's foreign exchange market has operated for only six to seven hours a day since switching to a free-floating exchange rate system in December 1997. Under the new system, trading will run continuously from 6 a.m. on Mondays to 6 a.m. on Saturdays, with trading also remaining open on Korean public holidays, except weekends and New Year's Day. The government has also eased market access requirements for foreign investors as part of the broader reform package, with officials hoping easier access to the foreign exchange market will further strengthen South Korea's appeal to global investors and support its case for reclassification.
