Securities Firms’ Profit Jumps 76%
Brokerage Fees Account for Bigger Share of Earnings
By Park Hyong-ki
Staff Reporter
Securities companies operating in Korea saw their earnings sharply increase in the six months to September on increased brokerage and fund sales commissions, according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS).
Fifty-four domestic and foreign brokerage houses posted a combined net profit of 2.6 trillion won, up 76 percent from the same period a year ago.
Of 40 domestic brokerage houses, Hana Daetoo Securities achieved the biggest net profit at 207 billion won, followed by Daewoo Securities, Samsung Securities and Woori Investment & Securities.
Of 14 foreign brokerage units, UBS recorded the biggest net profit at 95 billion won. Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and Credit Suisse followed.
Increased brokerage commission income amid the stock boom and rises in fee income from sales of various funds boosted their first half earnings, it said.
They posted a combined brokerage fee income of 3.1 trillion won, accounting for about 74 percent of the total.
The regulatory body said they are still too reliant on brokerage commission for profits.
Stronger brokerage commission income and higher margin boosted 54 companies' return on equity to 21.5 percent, from 14.9 percent a year ago.
Also, their combined assets grew 34.2 percent to 129.3 trillion won, while their net capital to risk-weighted asset ratio stood at 567.8 percent.