Stock rally, overseas growth, SpaceX gains fuel record profit
Mirae Asset Securities became the first South Korean brokerage house to post a quarterly net profit of over 1 trillion won ($673 million), riding high on the domestic stock market rally and its overseas expansion move.
Mirae Asset posted consolidated revenue of 14.43 trillion won and operating profit of 1.38 trillion won in the first quarter. The figures marked increases of 138.4 percent and 297.2 percent, respectively, from a year earlier.
Net profit also jumped 288 percent on-year to 1.0019 trillion won, making Mirae Asset the first local brokerage firm to surpass the 1 trillion won mark in quarterly net profit.
Riding on the domestic stock market rally, its assets under management, combining both at home and abroad, increased to 660 trillion won at the end of the first quarter, up about 58 trillion won in three months. This figure has since surged to 776 trillion won as of May 10.
Overseas subsidiaries drove the gain, posting their strongest performance ever: First-quarter pretax profit from overseas units came to 243.2 billion won, and annualized return on equity after tax is estimated at around 14 percent.
The Hong Kong unit recorded a record quarterly pretax profit of 81.3 billion won, while the New York subsidiary posted 83 billion won. Wealth management client assets in emerging countries such as India, Vietnam and Indonesia continued their steady growth, reaching 78 trillion won as of the end of March.
Mirae Asset's principal investment remained profitable for a fifth consecutive quarter, generating 804 billion won in valuation gains. The performance underscores the company's push toward higher-yield investment opportunities beyond traditional brokerage commission income.
SpaceX, one of Mirae Asset’s flagship principal investments, is expected to generate additional valuation gains when it proceeds with a public listing by the end of the second quarter, the company said.
Separately, the brokerage secured cornerstone investment opportunities in a Hong Kong-listed company, generating profits of 156 billion won in the first quarter.
Mirae Asset presented its vision to transform into a global investment platform operator encompassing brokerage services across traditional and digital assets. The company aims to move beyond a wealth management-focused business model to build an integrated investment platform that also covers digital assets.
As part of the move, Mirae Asset raised its stake in local crypto exchange Korbit to 92 percent in February.
The brokerage firm also plans to launch a mobile trading system in Hong Kong to expand its global retail client base. In April, Mirae Asset's Hong Kong unit received approval from the Securities and Futures Commission to offer digital asset trading services to retail investors.
Mirae Asset is also pushing to acquire a brokerage firm in the US to strengthen its global investment platform capabilities, as the introduction of omnibus accounts for foreign investors is expected to accelerate global capital inflows into the Korean stock market.
"We will continue to identify high-quality assets and innovative investment opportunities, while expanding wealth management and a global investment platform to provide clients with a broader range of investment opportunities as a global investment manager," an official from Mirae Asset said.
댓글
0