Decentralized derivatives exchange Lighter announced the launch of its first batch of on -chain perpetual contracts linked to South Korean stocks, covering major companies such as Samsung, SK Hynix and Hyundai Motor, and offering leverage of up to 10x, allowing traders to trade key South Korean stocks long and short 24/7 without going through traditional brokers.
Lighter launches perpetual contracts for Korean stocks, enabling one-click trading of Samsung and Hyundai.
On February 11, Lighter announced the official launch of perpetual contracts linked to the stock prices of major South Korean companies, including Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, Hyundai Motor, and the Korean Composite Index.
These contracts will use cryptocurrency as margin and settlement unit and offer up to 10x leverage, allowing traders to establish long or short positions at any time, without being restricted by the opening hours of the Korean stock market or traditional brokerage regulations.
Lighter states that its transaction architecture employs zero-knowledge (ZK) technology to optimize the execution and verification process, reducing transaction costs and improving matching efficiency while maintaining on-chain transparency. However, unlike actual stock ownership, perpetual contracts only provide exposure to price fluctuations rather than actual equity, increasing flexibility but sacrificing regulatory safeguards.
AI and semiconductor themes gain momentum, making South Korean stocks a new focus.
In recent years, South Korea's semiconductor and automotive industries have benefited from the growth in demand driven by AI and the global supply chain. Samsung and SK Hynix, in particular, are considered key drivers of performance in the high-bandwidth memory (HBM) field. The strong performance of some semiconductor-related leveraged products in recent months has also increased market attention to South Korean stock derivatives.
On the other hand, South Korean regulators have approved a 2x leveraged ETF linked to large corporations, which is expected to be listed this year, although retail investors will still need to undergo pre-market education before trading.
South Korean retail investors are fleeing cryptocurrencies and turning to AI stocks.
It's worth noting that this product launch comes at a time when South Korean retail investors' enthusiasm for the crypto market is clearly cooling. After the crypto market began to decline in October 2025, local trading volume in South Korea dropped by more than 60%, while trading volume on the South Korean KOSPI increased by 221%.
According to Bloomberg , South Korean retail investors who previously favored high leverage and Altcoin have shifted their funds to semiconductor, robotics, and AI-related stocks after market corrections and losses. The largest investments have been in US companies such as Alphabet ($GOOG), Tesla ($TSLA), Micron ($MU), and other leveraged or index products.
Against this backdrop, Lighter launched a perpetual contract for Korean stocks, which is seen as an attempt to connect the trend of bilateral capital flows. It retains the high leverage and 24/7 trading features that Korean retail investors love, while also introducing the most popular Korean stock theme in the market, which is expected to attract funds back to the blockchain.
This article, "Lighter Launches First Batch of On-Chain Perpetual Contracts for South Korean Stocks, One-Click Long/Short Positions for Samsung and SK Hynix," first appeared on ABMedia, a ABMedia .
