Translation to English

TCK Investments Chairman Warns of a FOMO-Driven Risky Market, Urges Sector and Market Rebalancing

Ga-young Moon for Maeil Business Newspaper
February 11, 2026

• Ohad Topor, Chairman of TCK Investments

• AI-driven optimism has pushed valuations in some sectors to extreme levels

• Selective rebalancing of higher-returning assets is warranted

• Maintaining exposure to both semiconductors and financial stocks remains a valid strategy

• A relatively high allocation to high-quality US assets should be maintained

• Medium- to long-term liquidity conditions are likely to tighten

“Markets today are dominated by FOMO (Fear of Missing Out). We are in a dangerous phase in which good news is being reflected in prices more aggressively than bad news.” Ohad Topor, Founder and Chairman of TCK Investments(Topor & Co Korea Asset Management), whose primary client base consists of ultra-high-net-worth individuals in Korea, said in a recent interview with Maeil Business Newspaper that the current environment calls for a more defensive investment stance.

Topor said that asset prices have risen significantly on the back of optimism around artificial intelligence (AI), but that valuations in some sectors have reached extreme levels, adding that the balance of risk is currently skewed toward a more dangerous direction.

He said that new investors with a long-term investment horizon would be better served by investing gradually, starting with smaller amounts, rather than entering the market immediately. He added that while existing investors do not need to sell all their assets, it is prudent to trim assets that have seen large gains and redeploy that capital into safer or cheaper assets.

As promising sectors within the Korean market, he pointed to semiconductors and financial stocks. He said that TCK invested aggressively in Korea’s core industries, including semiconductors, last year and generated significant gains, and has recently reduced those positions. However, he added that TCK continues to view the fundamentals of the Korean semiconductor sector positively and maintains an allocation.

He went on to say that Korea’s government-led value-up reforms are expected to eventually be implemented, noting that similar reforms in Japan triggered a re-rating of bank stocks. He added that Korean banks remain cheaper than their global peers, leaving ample room for upside.

TCK Investments has maintained a higher allocation to Korean equities than Korea’s share of global market capitalization since 2022. Around November last year, however, the firm sold roughly half of its holdings to lock in gains, redeploying the capital into global listed equities and private markets.

From a regional perspective, he recommended maintaining a higher allocation to the US market. He said that the US economy has structural strengths, including high labor productivity, energy independence, and leadership in AI, and added that for investors already invested in high-quality US assets, maintaining those allocations makes sense.

However, he cautioned that, in line with market concerns, medium- to long-term liquidity conditions are likely to tighten, following the appointment of Kevin Warsh as the next Chair of the US Federal Reserve.

He recalled that he recently had an opportunity to hear Warsh’s vision firsthand at a meeting, adding that his philosophy on monetary policy was very clear. He said that Warsh is critical of the excessive liquidity of the past and is a strong believer in sound money.

He added that Warsh’s leadership is likely to mark a turning point toward tighter liquidity conditions over the medium to long term, emphasizing that this signals that investors should no longer assume the Federal Reserve will support markets indefinitely.