Earticle

초록

영어

This study empirically investigates the long-term impact of listing regulation relaxation on corporate risk, focusing on South Korea’s unique "Technology-Based Special Listing" system. In line with the global trend of lowering entry barriers for innovative startups, such as the U.S. JOBS Act, South Korea introduced this scheme to enable technologically advanced firms to be listed on the KOSDAQ market. This system is particularly vital for R&D-intensive sectors such as biotechnology, artificial intelligence, and semiconductors, providing them with access to essential funding even before meeting traditional financial milestones, including profitability or specific revenue targets. While this policy fosters innovation, it also introduces significant investment risks driven by financial instability and heightened information asymmetry. Using stock return volatility as the primary proxy for investment risk, this research compares technology special listing firms with general IPO firms listed on the KOSDAQ market from 2014 to 2022. The research dataset was constructed by integrating listing data from the Korea Exchange’s (KRX) KIND system with financial and stock price information from the TS2000 database provided by the Korea Listed Companies Association. The final sample consists of 527 firms, including 149 technology special listing firms. To analyze firm-level risk, the study employs a multi-regression framework, controlling for firm characteristics such as firm size, leverage, return on assets (ROA), cash flow, and market-to-book ratios. The empirical results reveal that technology special listing firms exhibit significantly higher stock return volatility during their first year of listing compared to general IPO firms. This elevated initial risk is primarily attributed to two structural factors: the absence of conventional financial requirements leading to lower financial stability, and substantial information asymmetry inherent in firms whose value is primarily driven by intangible assets like technological potential. For these firms, the lack of a proven financial track record and a reliance on future growth expectations make their stock prices more sensitive to external shocks and market sentiment. However, a key finding of this research is that this volatility gap narrows considerably over the subsequent two to three years. As firm-specific information regarding technological progress and business milestones is disseminated into the market in a timely manner, the initial uncertainty is mitigated, leading to a stabilization of stock prices. Interestingly, while information asymmetry—measured through proxies like trading volume—significantly reduced over time, the study did not find a statistically significant improvement in the fundamental financial soundness of these firms during the same period. This suggests that the long-term reduction in stock return volatility is driven more by the resolution of information uncertainty through market learning than by fundamental financial recovery. To ensure the robustness of the findings, the study implemented several advanced econometric tests. First, the baseline risk measure was supplemented by employing market-adjusted return volatility and idiosyncratic risk. Second, the analysis was restricted to specific industries, such as medical and R&D sectors, where special listings are most prevalent, to control for industry-specific effects. Finally, to mitigate potential selection bias and omitted variable concerns, the research utilized Propensity Score Matching (PSM) and industry-specific 1:1 matching to compare special listing firms with general IPO firms of similar characteristics. The results remained consistent across all robustness checks. The findings of this research offer several contributions to both academia and practice. First, it adds to the global literature on the effects of listing regulation relaxation by providing detailed empirical evidence from the Korean market, highlighting the dual nature of capital access and investor protection. Second, unlike previous studies that focused primarily on the short-term performance or qualitative characteristics of special listing firms, this study provides a comprehensive long-term analysis of investment risk dynamics. It highlights the role of timely and transparent disclosure in reducing market uncertainty over time. For policymakers and regulators, these results suggest that while relaxing financial entry barriers is an effective tool for promoting industrial innovation, such measures must be complemented by robust disclosure requirements and institutional monitoring to protect investors and maintain market trust. For investors, the research provides a balanced perspective, emphasizing that the high initial volatility of technical listing firms is a characteristic of their unique information environment rather than a permanent state of instability. Ultimately, the study confirms that as the market processes and incorporates firm-specific information, the risks associated with innovative but financially unproven firms tend to stabilize.

한국어

본 연구는 한국의 기술특례상장 제도가 기업 위험에 미치는 장기적 영향을 실증 분석하였다. 2014~2022년 코스닥 시장에 상장한 기술특례상장 기업과 일반상장 기업을 대상으로 주식수익률 변동성을 분석한 결과, 기술특례상장 기업은 상장 첫해에 일반상장 기업보다 유의하게 높은 변동성을 보였다. 이는 기술특례상장 기업이 재무요건을 면제받음으로써 상대적으로 낮은 초기 재무 안정성을 보이고, 무형자산 중심의 사업 구조로 인해 높은 정보비대칭성을 가지기 때문으로 보인다. 그러나 상장 후 2~3년이 경과하면서 두 상장 유형 간의 변동성 차이는 상장 첫해 대비 크게 축소되었다. 이러한 결과는 시간이 지남에 따라 기술특례상장 기업의 정보가 시장에 빠르게 축적·확산되어 정보비대칭이 점진적으로 완화되었기 때문으로 판단된다. 본 연구는 기술특례상장 기업이 상장초기에는 높은 투자 위험을 보이나, 시간이 지남에 따라 정보비대칭이 완화되며 위험이 감소하는 경향을 실증적으로 제시하였다는 점에서 의의가 있다.

목차

요약
Abstract
Ⅰ. 서론
Ⅱ. 기술특례상장 제도 및 가설설정
1. 기술특례상장 제도
2. 선행연구
3. 가설설정
Ⅲ. 표본구성 및 연구방법
1. 표본구성
2. 연구모형
Ⅳ. 실증분석
1. 기초통계량
2. 기술특례상장과 일반상장 기업의 주식수익률 변동성
3. 강건성 분석
Ⅴ. 결론
References

키워드

저자

• 김재천 [ Jae Chun Kim | 가톨릭대학교 경영학과 박사과정 ]
• 김태연 [ Taeyeon Kim | 가톨릭대학교 경영학과 조교수 ] 교신저자

참고문헌

발행기관

간행물

표지보기 관심저널 등록

• 간행물명

  재무연구 [Asian Review of Financial Research]

• 간기

  계간

• pISSN

  1229-0351

• eISSN

  2713-6531

• 수록기간

  1988~2026

• 등재여부

  KCI 등재,SCOPUS

• 십진분류

  KDC 325 DDC 330