Hundreds of Billions Lost by Customers on 'Black Monday', Preparing Lawsuit Against Hana Securities

Joined Option Alpha Lab Account and Suffered Hundreds of Billions in Losses
"Claimed Proper Risk Disclosure Was Not Provided"

Among the subscribers of the 'Hana Customized Option Alpha Wrap Account,' eight are preparing a lawsuit against Hana Securities for damages.

According to the financial investment industry on the 23rd, most investors who subscribed to the Option Alpha Wrap sold by Hana Securities Club One WM Center suffered massive losses due to forced liquidation on the 5th, when the KOSPI 200 index plummeted.

Previously, Hana Securities sold wrap products investing in options based on the KOSPI 200 index at Club One WM Center, which targets high-net-worth individuals, as well as at several branches including Bundang.

The KOSPI 200 option is a European-style option that can only be exercised at maturity. On the 5th, the underlying asset, the KOSPI 200 index, sharply dropped and volatility increased. Option investors who invested using strategies such as ratio spread faced a situation where margin requirements surged depending on their positions.

The ratio spread is one of the option trading techniques where investment is made expecting small fluctuations in the underlying asset. It involves buying calls at a lower strike price and selling more calls at a higher strike price, allowing profits if the underlying asset price stays below a certain level. However, if the underlying asset price moves beyond a certain level, losses can be unlimited.

At that time, the Korea Exchange required additional margin payments during trading hours due to the sharp fluctuations in the underlying asset index. Hana Securities sent margin call texts to customers requesting additional margin payments. However, customers who did not fully understand the meaning failed to pay the additional margin.

Hana Securities did not provide further explanation of the text's meaning, and customers' positions were forcibly liquidated. The scale of losses for 80 people reached approximately 50 billion KRW.

Among the investors who suffered losses, eight appointed the law firm Class Hangyeol as their legal representative. The victims claimed that Hana Securities only explained that the product had been managed stably in the past and would not incur losses, but did not properly explain the risks of the wrap product, the risks of options, or the importance of margin during the sales process.

Attorney Kim Kwangjoong of Class Hangyeol stated, "It appears that customers invested without properly recognizing the risks and suffered huge losses," adding, "as additional inquiries continue, the scale of the lawsuit is expected to grow further."

Previously, Attorney Kim represented investors who opened accounts with KB Securities and invested in Nikkei 225 index put options on the Osaka Securities Exchange, and who suffered losses of hundreds of billions of KRW due to forced liquidation without margin call notifications. He won the appeal trial on their behalf.