Seoul, South Korea – South Korean securities firms reported a significant increase in net profits for the past year, approaching 7 trillion won, according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). The surge is attributed to a rise in commission revenues from increased overseas stock trading, fueled by the "Seohak Gaemi" (Korean retail investors investing in overseas stocks) phenomenon.

Key Highlights:

Net Profit Growth: The combined net profit of 60 securities firms reached 6.987 trillion won, marking a 23.0% increase from the previous year.
Contributing Factors:Increased gains from proprietary trading due to rising major stock indices and exchange rates.
A sharp rise in overseas stock trading volume, boosting commission revenues.
Improved performance in brokerage and investment banking (IB) sectors, driven by the resumption of new real estate project finance (PF) transactions.
Commission Revenue Surge:Total commission revenue increased by 10.4% to 12.9457 trillion won.
Brokerage commissions rose by 13.3% to 6.2658 trillion won, driven by the surge in overseas stock trading.
IB commissions increased by 14.2% to 3.7422 trillion won, influenced by real estate PF activities.
Proprietary Trading Gains: Proprietary trading gains increased by 36.5% to 12.5776 trillion won.
Total Asset Growth: Total assets of securities firms reached 755.3 trillion won at the end of the year, a 10.0% increase.
Soundness Indicators: The net capital ratio rose to 801.8%, and the leverage ratio increased to 662.3%.

Future Plans: The FSS plans to closely monitor the liquidity and soundness of securities firms and continue to guide the resolution of non-performing assets.
This robust performance underscores the growing participation of Korean investors in global markets and the resilience of the domestic securities industry.