Oh Se-hoon: "Government Turns Stock Market into a Gambling Den, Then Takes Credit for Debt Forgiveness; Youth Driven to Bankruptcy"

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon has strongly criticized the government over issues involving leveraged derivative products that have caused severe volatility in the domestic stock market, as well as the "active debt forgiveness" policy ordered by President Lee Jae-myung, calling for immediate countermeasures.

In a post on his Facebook page, Mayor Oh stated, "The Lee Jae-myung administration is teaching young people that the harder they work, the more they lose," adding, "It is a society where only the young people who diligently repay their debts end up looking like fools."

Mayor Oh criticized the situation, saying, "The KOSPI sidecar has been triggered 37 times this year, already surpassing the 26 times recorded during the entire year of 2008, the year of the global financial crisis." He added, "This is the result of approving the risks of single-stock leveraged derivative products while knowing the dangers, and standing idly by while the assets of retail investors evaporated."

He pointed out, "In a society where the ladder to buying a home with a salary has been broken, the capital market was the last bastion where young people could dream of social mobility, but that bastion is now operating as a cruel trap."

He further assessed, "Only now that the situation has reached this point has the government come up with a belated measure to raise the minimum deposit for single-stock leveraged ETFs to 30 million won. It is a measure that fixes the latch that should have been locked long ago, only after young people have been driven to the brink of bankruptcy."

He also remarked, "In the midst of this, President Lee Jae-myung has reiterated his call for the forgiveness of long-term overdue debts, dismissing concerns about moral hazard as 'irresponsible agitation,'" and added, "On one hand, they drive young people into a gambling den, and on the other, they take credit for debt forgiveness."

He continued, "The tragedy of the capital market is becoming a domino bomb that is spreading to the real estate market," and noted, "The consequence of the collapsed gambling den is leading to skyrocketing housing prices, foreshadowing a cruel outcome that will completely destroy the housing stability of young people."

Mayor Oh emphasized, "A country that robs young people of the opportunity to build sound assets has no future," adding, "A full-scale audit of the approval process for risky derivative products is necessary. The government must come up with fundamental prescriptions to restore the health of the capital market."

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.