Fintech platform operator Viva Republica said Wednesday that it has received preliminary approval to run a stock trading business from the nation’s financial watchdog, the Financial Services Commission.

In order to run the stock business in a safe and stable manner, the company, which runs peer-to-peer money transfer app Toss, will beef up workforce and upgrade systems in the coming months before receiving final approval from the financial authority, the Seoul-based financial technology firm said.

“The number of individual investors has remained at 5 million, or 13 percent of the entire population, and those in their 20s and 30s account for only 25 percent, lower than those in advanced financial markets around the world, including the US,” said Park Jae-min, chief of a Viva Republica affiliate to launch the stock trading house.

Of 16 million Toss subscribers, 60 percent of them are those in their 20s and 30s. Viva Republica also received a preliminary nod of approval to run an online only bank in December.

By Kim Young-won (wone0102@heraldcorp.com)