Yi Whan-woo is a Korea Times journalist primarily covering finance. He writes in-depth articles on macroeconomy and financial markets and previously covered sports, politics, diplomacy and inter-Korean affairs, among others. Feel free to contact him at yistory@koreatimes.co.kr.
Bull market paves smoother path for brokerages to join W1 tril. club
Pedestrians pass through a crosswalk in Seoul’s financial district of Yeouido, Dec. 24, 2025. Yonhap
By Yi Whan-woo
An increasing number of brokerage houses are joining the so-called “1 trillion won club” with greater confidence than before, driven by an accelerated rally in the stock market that has subsequently boosted the companies’ profits, industry officials said Monday.
In the brokerage sector, the club typically refers to companies that post more than 1 trillion won ($682.03 million) in yearly operating profit.
The term now extends to the more demanding target of annual net income, with five companies — Mirae Asset Securities, Korea Investment Securities, Kiwoom Securities, NH Investment & Securities and Samsung Securities — so far having achieved both benchmarks.
Mirae Asset Securities, one of the top-two companies, announced in its 2025 earnings report Monday that its operating profit totaled 1.91 trillion won and its net income 1.59 trillion won.
Each figure set a record high, rising 72.2 percent and 61.2 percent, respectively, from the previous year.
Korea Investment Securities, the other top-two company, has already secured entry into the club, with full-year earnings set to be announced at a shareholders’ meeting in March.
As of the first three quarters of 2025, the company recorded operating profit of 1.98 trillion won and net income of 1.67 trillion won.
“The company is projected to surpass the 2 trillion won milestone in both figures for 2025, marking a first in the industry,” said Jung Eui-jung, head of the Korean Stockholders' Alliance.
Three other companies announced their 2025 earnings last week, each posting net income of more than 1 trillion won for the first time in their history.
Kiwoom Securities reported operating profit of 1.48 trillion won, up 35.5 percent from 2024, and net income of 1.11 trillion won, a 33.5 percent increase from the previous year.
NH Investment & Securities recorded an operating profit of 1.42 trillion won and net income of 1.03 trillion won, up 50.2 percent and 57.7 percent from 2024, respectively.
Samsung Securities saw operating profit climb 14.2 percent to 1.37 trillion won, while net income advanced 12.2 percent to 1.008 trillion won.
Industry officials attributed the strong performances largely to a bullish KOSPI, which posted the highest growth among major global indexes at 75.6 percent in 2025.
“Rising trading volumes translated directly into higher commission revenue, a core source of income for securities firms,” an industry official said.
Analysts expect securities firms to sustain their growth momentum in 2026, noting that average daily trading value jumped 339 percent in January from a year earlier and also 89 percent from December.