SEOUL - South Korean asset management firms experienced a 12.5 percent increase in combined net profit in the third quarter, largely driven by a significant rise in non-operating income, according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS).
According to Yonhap News Agency, The FSS's preliminary data indicated that the net income of these firms reached 431.9 billion won (approximately US$325.6 million) for the quarter ending September, marking a 48 billion won increase from the previous quarter and a 19.4 percent year-on-year rise. This improvement was primarily due to a more than doubling of non-operating income, which surged to 190.6 billion won in the July-September period from 85.1 billion won in the preceding quarter. However, operating income declined to 341.6 billion won from 414.4 billion won, and fees and commissions revenue dropped by 3.6 percent quarter-on-quarter to 985.4 billion won. The firms' return-on-equity, a key profitability measure, edged up by 1 percentage point to 11.9 percent. Total assets under management increased by 1.5 percent, amounting to 1,465.3 trillion won as of the end of September. Out of 465 asset management firms in South Korea, 216 reported net profits, while 249 registered losses in the third quarter.