"One Billion Won Salary in Just Six Months": Securities Firms on the Verge of Surpassing Banks in Job Preference

Preference for Securities Companies Surges to 34.4%

Gap with Banks Shrinks from 14% to 0.1% in Just Two Years

Top Five Securities Firms Also See Preference Rates Rise from 9.4% to 14%

Improved Earnings Drive Significant Increases in Employee Salaries

Office workers are heading to work on their morning commute in Taepyeongno 1-ga, Jung-gu, Seoul.

Thanks to the exceptional bull market in the domestic stock market during the first half of the year, securities companies have emerged as the dream employers for university students. The gap in preference between securities companies and banks—traditionally the strongest choice in the finance sector—has virtually disappeared in just two years, leading to changes in the overall landscape of job preferences within the industry.

Narrowed to a 0.1% Point Gap with Banks

According to a survey conducted by Incruit on August 18 regarding "Financial Companies University Students Want to Work For," the preference rate for securities companies this year totaled 34.4%. General banks were chosen by 34.5% of respondents, just 0.1 percentage points higher than securities companies.

As recently as 2024, preference for general banks was 40%, with securities companies at 26%, resulting in a gap of 14 percentage points. That gap has virtually vanished over the past two years.

Looking at individual companies, traditional banks are still dominant. Toss Bank claimed the top spot, followed by KB Kookmin Bank, KakaoBank, and Shinhan Bank in second to fourth place, respectively.

However, the average preference for the so-called "Big Five" banks—Kookmin, Shinhan, NongHyup, Woori, and Hana—fell from 31% in 2024 to 25% this year, a decline of 6 percentage points. In contrast, the preference for the top five securities companies—Mirae Asset Securities, Korea Investment & Securities, Kiwoom Securities, Samsung Securities, and NH Investment & Securities—increased from 9.4% to 14% over the same period.

It is also notable that individual securities companies climbed in the rankings. Samsung Securities rose four places from 10th in 2024 to 6th this year, while Mirae Asset Securities jumped 13 spots from 24th to 11th.

Record-Breaking Earnings Lead to Sharp Salary Increases

The backdrop for the rising preference for securities companies is their significantly improved recent performance. As domestic stock trading activity surged, securities companies saw greater profitability, fueling expectations for higher compensation, especially bonuses.

The combined consolidated net profit for the second quarter of this year among Korea’s top ten securities firms—Mirae Asset Securities, Korea Investment & Securities, Samsung Securities, KB Securities, NH Investment & Securities, Shinhan Securities, Meritz Securities, Kiwoom Securities, Hana Securities, and Daishin Securities—was reported at 5.9362 trillion won. This is a 141% surge compared to the same period last year, and a 37% increase over the previous quarter.

Notably, Mirae Asset Securities recorded a net profit of 2.9072 trillion won in just the first half of this year, becoming the first in the industry to achieve net profits of 1 trillion won or more in two consecutive quarters. Korea Investment & Securities and Kiwoom Securities also joined the "1 Trillion Won Club" for biannual net profit, while NH Investment & Securities and Samsung Securities posted half-year net profits in the 900 billion won range.

These improved earnings have been reflected in employee compensation. The average salary per employee at Korea Investment & Securities in the first half of this year reached approximately 162 million won, up 25.6% (33 million won) from 129 million won during the same period last year. Mirae Asset Securities saw its average rise to 136 million won, a 36% (36 million won) increase from 100 million won the previous year.

During the same period, average per-employee pay increased at NH Investment & Securities from 105 million won to 123 million won; at Kiwoom Securities from 103.26 million won to 120.18 million won; and at Samsung Securities from 86 million won to 109 million won.

Industry insiders believe this trend of high preference is likely to continue for the time being. They point to lower psychological barriers to joining the securities industry among younger generations, who increasingly have experience with stock investments, and to the strong domestic market boosting both earnings and compensation at securities firms.

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