Korea Investment sees record quarterly net profit

Korea Investment & Securities Co. enjoyed a record quarterly net profit on the course to become the country's most profitable brokerage house thanks to strong earnings from the asset management, investment banking and brokerage businesses.

The unlisted firm's net profit rose 40.7% to 368.7 billion won ($270.3 million) in the January-March period, the largest for a quarter, from a year earlier, according to industry sources on Tuesday.

Its operating profit grew 36.5% to 398.1 billion won on a consolidated basis, although sales fell 24% to 6.2 trillion won.

The securities firm said healthy sales of fixed-rate products such as bonds amid rising interest rates contributed to the higher profit.

The brokerage house has been boosting its profitability since CEO Kim Sung-Hwan took office late last year, speeding up decision-making, industry sources said.

Write to Eun-Hyuk Ryu at ehryu@hankyung.com