IMA Three-Way Race Heats Up: Will It Shape Securities Firms' Earnings?

NH Investment & Securities' newly launched Integrated Investment Account (IMA) product successfully sold out on its first day, signaling the start of an intense 'IMA three-way battle' with Korea Investment & Securities and Mirae Asset Securities. An IMA is a product that allows integrated management of deposits, stocks, bonds, funds, and more within a single account.

NH Investment & Securities' 'N2 IMA1 Mid-Term Type 1' is designed with a target rate of return of 4.0% per annum, aiming for additional returns based on operating performance, and includes a contractual structure that guarantees the principal investment. Corporate funds accounted for 55% of the sales, exceeding individual investors (45%), and approximately 60% of the total sales amount was identified as new assets flowing in from other financial institutions.

Korea Investment & Securities and Mirae Asset Securities, NH Investment & Securities' competitors in the IMA market, received approval in December last year and have already attracted significant funds. Korea Investment & Securities attracted over 1 trillion won with its first IMA product launch alone, while Mirae Asset Securities saw approximately 500 billion won concentrated into a product launched at 100 billion won. This competition is creating a trend of investment funds moving from banks to securities firms.

According to the Financial Supervisory Service's electronic disclosure system, the net profit of South Korea's top 10 securities firms exceeded 9 trillion won last year, with the number of firms recording over 1 trillion won in net profit increasing to five: Korea Investment & Securities, Mirae Asset Securities, NH Investment & Securities, Samsung Securities, and Kiwoom Securities. Notably, Korea Investment & Securities surpassed 2 trillion won in net profit. In contrast, smaller securities firms that have not received IMA approval find it difficult to participate in this trend.