KRX Announces Status of Corporate Value Enhancement by Listed Companies

Jeong Eun-bo, chairman of the Korea Exchange. (KRX) (Photo: KRX)

The Korea Exchange (KRX) announced the monthly corporate value enhancement status as of Jan. 26 for listed companies as part of efforts to spread a culture of respect for shareholder value.

Driven by improved earnings of major corporations and the Korean government’s policies to revitalize capital markets, the KOSPI index crossed the 5,000-point mark for the first time on Jan. 27.

The Korea Value-up Index also reached an all-time high of 2,330.71 points on Jan. 30, marking a 134.9% increase from 992.13 points on its inception date (Sept. 30, 2024).

This outperformed the KOSPI’s growth rate (101.5%) by 33.4 percentage points during the same period.

The total net assets (AUM) of 13 Value-up ETFs reached 1.7 trillion won, representing an approximately 255.3% increase from its beginning (Nov. 4, 2024).

In January 2026, six companies disclosed their corporate value-up plans.

They were Kaon Group (Jan. 7), Sungkwang Bend (Jan. 12), Hanwha Corp. (Jan. 14), Ubion (Jan. 16), KT Millie Seojae (Jan. 19), and STIC Investment (Jan. 19). A total of 176 companies filed 176 main disclosures as of January 2026.

During the same period, Korea District Heating Corp. (Jan. 2) and Coway (Jan. 20) submitted periodic disclosures.

Listed companies continued making efforts toward higher shareholder returns.

Following SK Hynix’s decision to cancel 12.2 trillion won worth of treasury stocks, Samsung Electronics announced a 6.1 trillion won stock buyback and 3.8 trillion won in cash dividends.

Meanwhile, the KRX revised the Corporate Value-up Plan Guidelines and Handbook on Jan. 22, 2026.

The revision allows companies to set goals by qualitatively describing growth strategies and directions in cases where providing specific numerical targets is challenging.

Since the implementation of corporate value enhancement plan disclosures in May 2024, 177 companies had submitted disclosures by January 2026.

Two companies (HD Hyundai Mipo and HD Hyundai Infracore) did not due to their merger.

New disclosure companies in January 2026 were Kaon Group (1.7), Sung Kwang Bend (1.12), Hanwha Corp. (1.14), Ubion (1.16), KT Millie Seojae (1.19), and STIC Investment (1.19).

Two companies submitted periodic disclosures. The two were Korea District Heating Corporation (Jan. 2) and Coway (Jan. 20).

Following Hanwha Aerospace (June 4, 2025) and Hanwha Systems (June 26, 2025), Hanwha Corp. announced its corporate value enhancement plan (Jan. 14, 2026).

Hanwha Corp. proposed strengthening its core business expertise through a business restructuring, strengthening shareholder returns through the cancellation of all treasury shares and improving profitability targets and governance.

Four KOSDAQ-listed companies — Kaon Group (January 7, 2026), Sung Kwang Bend (January 12, 2026), Ubion (January 16, 2026), and KT Milli’s Seojae (January 19, 2026) — submitted new disclosures, demonstrating the gradual expansion of KOSDAQ-listed companies’ disclosures of corporate value enhancement plans.

Korea District Heating Corp. submitted a periodic disclosure in Jan. 2026. Since its initial disclosure in December 2024, the company had done on a semi-annual basis. As of January 2026, a total of 59 companies submitted periodic disclosures.

SK Hynix, having achieved record-breaking earnings, announced a massive treasury stock cancellation of 12.2 trillion won and a 1.3 trillion won cash dividend plan, showing its commitment to enhancing its shareholder value.

Samsung Electronics also decided to buy back 6.1 trillion of treasury stocks and pay 3.8 trillion won in cash dividends, while Samsung C&T decided to cancel a large amount of treasury stocks worth 2.3 trillion won.

The KOSPI index surpassed 5,000 points for the first time on Jan. 27 thanks to strong performances by semiconductor companies and the promotion of capital market revitalization policies.

The Value-Up Index closed at an all-time high of 2,330.71 points, a 134.9% increase from 992.13 points higher than the start date on Sept. 30, 2024, exceeding the KOSPI index’s 101.5% increase (by 33.4 percentage points) from a year earlier.