Bull market raises hope for securities firms to join ‘W1 tril. club’ for 2nd straight year

A bull market is fueling optimism for five major securities firms here to join the “1 trillion won club” in operating profit for the second straight year, according to industry officials on Monday. The five — Mirae Asset Securities, Korea Investment & Securities, Samsung Securities, Kiwoom Securities and Meritz Securities — all surpassed 1 trillion won ($730.83 million) in operating profit last year after failing to do so in 2023, due to a downturn in the real estate market and other adverse economic effects. The 2024 milestone was made possible by a U.S. stock market rally and a surge in Korean retail investors’ overseas stock trading. Adding to the optimism for a revival of the “1 trillion won club” is the benchmark KOSPI recently surpassing the 3,000-point threshold for the first time since the COVID-19 era. Market analysts’ forecast for Mirae Asset Securities’ 2025 operating profit averaged 1.24 trillion won on Monday, after the company’s operating profit tallied 1.64 trillion won in 2024. The operating profit of Korea Investment & Securities is projected at 1.51 tWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times