Curious how to buy Samsung stock in the US? It's not that easy

Samsung stock has been on an absolute tear over the past year. Investors have poured into the company as its future prospects, backed by insatiable demand for memory products, have improved massively.

Naturally, this has led many in the United States to be curious about how to buy Samsung stock in the US, but it's not as straightforward as it may seem.

There are dozens of companies under the Samsung conglomerate and when people want to buy Samsung stock in the US, they're basically looking for exposure to Samsung Electronics. This is the crown jewel of the conglomerate which makes everything from Galaxy smartphones to high-bandwidth memory chips, processors, and more.

It's rather simple to buy stock for companies that trade on US stock exchanges like the NYSE or NASDAQ. Use whatever broker or platform you like, put in an order, and you're all set. Unfortunately, that's not the case for Samsung stock.

Samsung isn't listed on any major US stock exchange nor does it offer any ADRs or American Depositary Receipts. ADRs are basically certificates tied to a foreign company's domestic shares that trade on US exchanges. This essentially makes direct ownership of Samsung stock in the United States impossible.

Investors do have some other options but they may not be suitable for everyone, certainly not for the average investor.

For example, there are several Exchange Traded Funds or ETFs that offer exposure to South Korean stocks including Samsung, but then you're buying a basket of stocks and not fully investing in Samsung Electronics only. ETFs also have various fees and charges that investors should be mindful of.

More seasoned investors can opt to open accounts with South Korean brokers which would then enable them to buy Samsung stock in South Korea. However, this would require a lot of paperwork, familiarity with foreign market regulations and foreign exchange risk, and may also have tax implications that the average investor may not understand.

Ultimately, anybody who looks into how to buy Samsung stock in the US quickly finds that it's not as simple as they would have expected. The way they're used to buying other stocks in the US won't work for Samsung Electronics.

This won't change unless the company lists directly on a US exchange or offers ADRs. Given that it hasn't done that for decades, it's unlikely we may see that happening anytime soon.

Editor's note: Not financial advice.