DB Securities posted more than 70 billion won in net profit in the first half of this year, marking a sharp improvement from a year earlier. Improved profitability in the wealth management (WM) institutional sector on the back of a strong stock market and growth in the principal investment (PI) institutional sector drove the results.
According to the Financial Supervisory Service's electronic disclosure system on the 14th, DB Securities' first-half operating profit on a consolidation basis came to 77.7 billion won, with net profit at 70.8 billion won. Those were up 36.8% and 49.4%, respectively, from the same period last year.
Rising interest rates in the first half somewhat reduced profitability in the bond institutional sector, but the WM institutional sector's profitability improved thanks to a buoyant stock market. Continued growth in the PI institutional sector offset the weakness in bonds.
Investment banking (IB) and project financing (PF) institutional sectors also maintained solid profitability. The company said it strengthened its business base by continuously expanding related organizations and personnel despite intensifying industry competition.
Major subsidiaries also contributed to the improvement. DB Asset Management expanded its revenue base as assets under management (AUM) increased, and DB Savings Bank maintained a stable performance trend as the burden of real estate-related provisions eased.
Financial capacity also expanded. On a separate basis in the first half, DB Securities' equity exceeded 1 trillion won for the first time since its founding. In June, it issued 150 billion won in hybrid capital securities. The consolidated net capital ratio (NCR) was 421.3%, up 77.4 percentage points from the end of last year.
A DB Securities official said, "We will continue to strengthen the competitiveness of our core businesses and expand performance in the PI institutional sector to do our best to enhance corporate value."