Seen on this picture is a row of ATM machines in Seoul, Oct. 20. Yonhap
By Yi Whan-woo
Extra Koreans seem like wealthy sufficient to save lots of greater than 1 billion gained ($724,300) in money and reap giant curiosity earnings correspondingly, in keeping with information, Sunday.
The info launched by the Financial institution of Korea (BOK) confirmed banks nationwide reported a complete of 781.23 trillion gained of their clients’ financial savings accounts with remaining balances exceeding 1 billion gained on the finish of June.
The determine represents a 1.2 % improve from the top of 2023 and in addition marks the primary upturn within the balances of the aforementioned accounts in a yr and a half.
The quantity totaled at 796.34 trillion gained on the finish of 2022 and fell to 772.42 trillion in June 2023 and once more to 771.49 trillion gained on the finish of 2023.
The BOK didn’t specify what number of accounts or holders have been reported.
The central financial institution cited its excessive rate of interest coverage as the explanation behind the rise within the balances of the financial savings accounts with greater than 1 billion gained.
The BOK saved benchmark rates of interest at 3.5 % — the best since December 2008 — from January 2023 earlier than it lower the speed by 0.25 foundation level to three.25 %, Oct. 11.
The Korea Finance Buyer Federation, an advocate group of economic clients, deemed that the BOK findings “replicate a rising variety of rich Koreans who’ve 1 billion gained in money.”
“Or, the findings maybe recommend {that a} handful of Koreans who’re on the prime of the earnings pyramid are more and more opening financial savings accounts and placing in 1 billion gained and extra to reap excessive curiosity earnings.”
The federation additionally deemed {that a} 1 billion gained value financial savings account is estimated to provide tens of tens of millions of gained in curiosity earnings yearly in return.
In the meantime, a separate research from KB Monetary Group’s assume tank confirmed a complete of 456,000 people within the nation had monetary property value 10 billion gained or extra in 2023.
The 2023 tally elevated by 8 % from 393,000 in 2020. It additionally accounted for less than 0.89 % of the nation’s whole inhabitants.
The 456,000 people had monetary property value 2,747 trillion gained collectively. The worth of actual property they owned was value 2,543 trillion gained.
Whereas actual property makes a big share in Koreans’ wealth, monetary property are thought-about one other barometer in measuring such wealth as it may be cashed out shortly in case of emergency.
