The Korean stock exchange is bracing itself for a wave of competition from rival trading platforms for the first time, which is set to break the bourse's stranglehold over the country's securities markets and present opportunities for western exchange operators looking to tap into Asia's stellar growth.

A deregulation of Korean financial markets is set to allow for competing share trading platforms "in the near future", according to Bong Soo Kim, chief executive of the Korean Exchange, or KRX, while local banks are pressing for increased competition against the bourse.