Interactive Brokers Adds Nextrade Access, Extending Korean Equity Trading To 12 Hours

Interactive Brokers has expanded its South Korean equity offering by adding connectivity to Nextrade, the country’s first Alternative Trading System (ATS). The integration gives global investors access to longer trading hours, additional liquidity and automated best execution across multiple trading venues.

The launch builds on Interactive Brokers’ earlier integration of the Korea Exchange (KRX), making the broker one of the few international firms providing direct electronic access to both of South Korea’s equity trading venues through a single platform.

Extended Trading Hours and Smart Routing

Nextrade supports approximately 650 securities listed on the KOSPI and KOSDAQ markets. Trading is available from 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM KST, split into pre-market (8:00–8:50 AM), standard (9:00 AM–3:20 PM) and after-market (3:30–8:00 PM) sessions. This 12-hour window significantly exceeds the traditional Korean stock market session.

Interactive Brokers’ SmartRouting technology automatically compares prices between Nextrade and the Korea Exchange, directing client orders to whichever venue offers the best available execution. This eliminates the need for traders to manually choose between venues and can reduce transaction costs while improving execution quality.

Why Nextrade Matters

Nextrade introduces competition into South Korea’s equity market, historically dominated by the Korea Exchange. As an ATS, it competes by offering different pricing models, longer hours and specialised order types. The platform allows investors to react more quickly to overnight developments in the US and Europe.

South Korea is one of Asia’s most important equity markets, home to global giants like Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix and Hyundai Motor. Providing more flexible access to these securities strengthens Interactive Brokers’ international equity offering as investors diversify beyond North America and Europe.

The move reflects a broader global trend of equity market fragmentation, where liquidity is distributed across multiple venues linked by smart order routing technology. Interactive Brokers’ integration allows international investors to benefit from that evolution without changing their trading workflows.

Availability and Outlook

Interactive Brokers noted that access to Nextrade through its platform is not available to residents of South Korea and remains subject to jurisdiction-specific availability. The broker now offers trading across more than 170 markets worldwide through a unified platform.

As more countries introduce competing exchanges and ATS platforms, smart order routing is likely to become increasingly important for both institutional and sophisticated retail investors seeking best execution across fragmented markets.