Foreign banks operating in South Korea saw their combined net profit rise three point two percent to more than three hundred billion won for the first six months of this year. That's roughly two hundred-40 million U.S. dollars.
The Financial Supervisory Commission credited gains from investments in bonds and derivative trading.
According to the financial watchdog, Citibank and 34 others posted four hundred-70 billion won in operating profit during the same period, up more than 16 percent from a year ago.
The banks recorded a more than eight percent drop in interest earnings due to a slew of interest rate cuts this year. But the non-interest sector gains chalked up more than 67 percent on rising commissions from foreign exchange transactions and investment gains in securities and derivatives.
Citibank topped the earnings list with a 62-billion won net profit, followed by Chase Manhattan Bank and Standard Chartered Bank.
Deposits at foreign banks increased 58 percent as more customers moved their money from ailing Korean banks.