KOSPI English Disclosures Up 8.6% Last Year, Enhancing Global Investor Access

Last year, disclosures by domestic listed companies increased overall, with English-language disclosures showing a particularly notable rise.

According to the “2025 KOSPI Market Disclosure Performance” released by the Korea Exchange on January 14, the total number of disclosures by KOSPI-listed companies in 2025 reached 26,391, up 4.3% from the previous year. During the same period, the average number of disclosures per company was about 31.2, an increase of 1.3 compared to the previous year.

The Korea Exchange stated, “Both Korean and English disclosures increased as KOSPI-listed companies maintained an active and voluntary disclosure stance. In particular, English-language disclosures grew by 8.6% compared to 2024, the first year of the phase one mandatory disclosure policy, thereby enhancing global investors’ access to information.”

Yonhap News Agency

By type, ad hoc disclosures accounted for the majority. In 2025, there were 17,716 ad hoc disclosures, up 3.9% (670 cases) from the previous year. Notably, there was an increase in newly established disclosures related to serious accidents, treasury stock acquisition and disposal, and bond issuances related to equity, due to strengthened disclosure obligations by financial authorities. In contrast, disclosures related to business transfers, spin-offs, and mergers associated with corporate restructuring decreased. Accordingly, comprehensive disclosures of significant information, including those related to mergers and acquisitions (M&A), also dropped sharply.

Voluntary disclosures totaled 1,640, an increase of 1.2% (19 cases). This rise was attributed to companies’ active willingness to provide information, leading to more explanatory and value-up disclosures. New disclosures also emerged in relation to the improvement plan for the substantive review of listing eligibility.

Fair disclosures remained at 1,743, the same level as the previous year. While disclosures of preliminary business results and forecasts increased, the number of ad hoc disclosures subject to mandatory disclosure obligations decreased, resulting in little change in the total number of fair disclosures.

Last year, the number of companies designated as unfaithful disclosure entities was 39, an increase of 5 cases from the previous year. While there were 4 fewer cases of disclosure non-compliance, there were 9 more cases of disclosure reversals. By reason, the increase in designations was mainly due to capital increases and reductions related to issued securities, and treasury stock acquisition and disposal (3 cases each).

In the KOSDAQ market, the total number of disclosures by listed companies last year was 25,138, up 5.4% from the previous year. The average number of disclosures per company was 13.8. Notably, English-language disclosures surged to 985, a 36.6% increase from the previous year. Among these, voluntary English disclosures soared by 146.2%, and ad hoc English disclosures jumped by 67.5%.

The number of companies designated as unfaithful disclosure entities in the KOSDAQ market was 81, a decrease of 28% from the previous year. In particular, following the implementation of strengthened disclosure management measures to prevent false disclosures regarding single sales and supply contracts, the number of unfaithful disclosures related to such contracts dropped sharply by 69.6% to 7 cases. However, unfaithful disclosures related to changes in the largest shareholder and management rights increased to 12 cases, up 8 cases (200%) from the previous year.

The Korea Exchange stated, “Going forward, we will continue to strengthen support measures to enhance the disclosure capabilities of KOSPI-listed companies, such as providing training for listed companies using cases of unfaithful disclosures, in order to improve market reliability. In line with the expansion of the phase two mandatory English-language disclosure policy starting this year, we will further expand our translation support services, including artificial intelligence (AI) translation, to continue improving global investors’ access to information.”