Seobyungki IBK Securities "Era of 10 Trillion KRW Equity Capital Nears... Supporting Innovative Growth of SMEs"

[Asia Economy Reporter Minji Lee] "To establish ourselves as a leader in the capital market growing alongside small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), I am determined to achieve KRW 1 trillion in equity capital within my term."

This was the statement made by Seobyungki, CEO of IBK Investment & Securities, at his inauguration ceremony on March 30 last year. The equity capital, which hovered around KRW 750 billion at the end of last year, grew to approximately KRW 950 billion after a KRW 200 billion paid-in capital increase at the beginning of this year. Considering the record-high performance last year (pre-tax net profit of KRW 110 billion), it is expected that the company will earn the title of a "KRW 1 trillion equity capital securities firm" in the second half of this year.

Through a written briefing on the 29th, CEO Seo explained, "Surpassing KRW 1 trillion in equity capital signifies the first leap to a mid-sized securities firm among the eight securities companies established in 2008," adding, "This year, we will strengthen market competitiveness and promote innovative management to establish a systematic platform."

According to the business report, IBK Investment & Securities achieved an annual net profit of KRW 80.5 billion for the first time since its founding last year, marking about a 27% growth compared to the previous year. Balanced growth across all business divisions, including retail, investment banking (IB), and asset management, was instrumental. In response to the contraction of overseas markets due to COVID-19, the company expanded the scale of domestic project financing (PF), and digital asset custody fees also increased.

As the real economy worsened due to COVID-19, SMEs were hit hard, leading to an expansion in funding scale from KRW 718.5 billion in 2019 to about KRW 930 billion last year. The company plans to continue supporting innovative growth for small and medium-sized enterprises and mid-sized companies this year as well.

To diversify its revenue structure, the company also plans to pursue new businesses. CEO Seo said, "Reflecting customers' high demand for overseas stocks following domestic stocks, we will form a task force (TF) team to build an overseas stock trading platform," adding, "In addition, we will accelerate the introduction of mobile web and simple authentication to strengthen digital competitiveness."

The KRW 200 billion raised through the paid-in capital increase earlier this year will be used to strengthen venture capital supply through IPOs and SPAC mergers of SMEs, equity investments in New Deal-related SMEs, formation of new technology investment associations, and business development companies (BDCs). CEO Seo emphasized, "Through synergy with IBK Industrial Bank's SME and mid-sized enterprise network, we will contribute to policy finance as a securities firm specialized in SMEs."

Finally, CEO Seo added, "To execute this vision, we have enhanced the professional expertise of our employees and strengthened content to raise ethical awareness," and said, "Just as the saying goes, 'If I am happy, those around me are happy (Geunja-yeol Wonjarae),' we will foster a corporate culture with the belief that 'employees must be happy for our customers to be happy.'"

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.