The recent roller-coaster ride in South Korea's KOSPI has been quite something. After a strong rally earlier in the year, the market experienced a sharp reversal in July before staging an equally sharp rebound. Majority of opinions focused on elevated margin borrowing and leveraged products, which had amplified the market's movements. Picture generated by ChatGPT To be fair, this is not a uniquely Korean phenomenon. We have had seen similar episodes in many markets over the years. When prices rise, investors talk about conviction, opportunity and being right. When prices fall, the discussion can sometimes shift towards interest rates, institutions, short sellers or regulators, to name a “few”. It reminded me of an old phrase: privatising profits, socialising blame. Who owns the decision? There is nothing wrong with having conviction in an investment, but rather the question is whether the accompanying risks are understood and accepted....