A retail investment study covering more than 45 countries shows that online search interest in stocks and crypto assets has significantly increased in South Korea over the past year. Compared to the same period last year, search volumes related to South Korea have grown by 95.7% in the recent 13 weeks, ranking first among the sampled countries.
Research measures retail investor interest based on search popularity
This study was published by Coin Insider and primarily compares the data from Google Trends for the years 2025 and 2026 to observe changes in the frequency of users in various countries searching for stocks and crypto investment methods. The study also includes changes over the past 4 weeks, the market value of the stock market as a proportion of GDP, as well as the proportion of national savings as a proportion of GDP as background indicators.
However, the search data reflects attention levels, which are not equivalent to actual account openings, purchases, or trading volumes. In other words, this is more like a reflection of the speed at which retail investors are researching investment opportunities, rather than direct evidence that funds have already flowed into the market.
Strong foundation in the local Korean market
The report shows that the total market value of the South Korean stock market is equivalent to 147.2% of GDP, indicating that the local stock market is relatively large in scale. South Korean national savings account for 35.6% of GDP, which also means that residents and enterprises have a considerable amount of disposable funds at their disposal.
The recent market environment in South Korea has also been intensifying this level of investment enthusiasm. The Bank of Korea mentioned in its monetary policy report this month that trading of leveraged products related to Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix has rapidly expanded, and warned about potential risks. These two companies together account for nearly half of the market value of South Korea's composite stock index, while the scale of related leveraged products listed in Hong Kong more than doubled in the first half of 2026.
In this context, South Korean regulators have previously proposed to limit individual investors' leverage on a single stock ETF to 20% of their investment assets. This measure is related to concerns about increased volatility in technology stocks and the potential for leveraged funds' daily position adjustments to amplify market fluctuations.
The topic of encrypted taxation is also heating up simultaneously.
South Korea's interest in digital assets is not isolated, but rather runs parallel to the active retail investor culture in the region. In September, local crypto investor groups requested a postponement of the implementation date for the virtual asset income tax, suggesting a two-year delay.
This development indicates that tax policy has become a direct concern for retail crypto investors in South Korea. However, the rankings by Coin Insider do not take into account regulatory or tax disputes, and are mainly based on search trends, stock market size, and savings data.
Singapore and Spain follow closely behind.
Apart from South Korea, Singapore and Spain also rank among the top. In Singapore, search interest has increased by 66% year-on-year over the past 13 weeks, and it remains 39% higher than the same period last year in the recent 4 weeks. The report states that Singapore's national savings account for GDP account for 40%, which is the highest among major countries, while the total market value of its stock market is equivalent to 136% of GDP.
The total market value of Spain's stock market is approximately 68% of GDP, with national savings accounting for 24%. The report suggests that this indicates that some residents have the ability to shift their funds from traditional deposits to investment assets such as stocks or cryptocurrencies.
Argentina and Bangladesh also made it into the top five. The report mentions that in environments with higher inflation or smaller local capital markets, stocks and crypto assets are more likely to be seen as alternative options to cash.
Growth of about 30% in the United States and Canada
Research shows that the search volume for stocks and cryptocurrencies in both the United States and Canada has increased by about 30% year-on-year. Although this growth rate is lower than that of the top five countries, the United States already has a mature stock exchange, a compliant brokerage account system, as well as spot cryptocurrency ETF products.
The report also mentions that mobile trading apps and cross-market platforms have lowered the barriers for ordinary investors to enter the stock and crypto markets. This is considered one of the important reasons for the simultaneous increase in retail investor interest around the world in recent years.
