SEOUL, KOREA - For the past two years of high-intensity downsizing in the securities industry, as many as 1,700 were let go, including 100 analysts.

 

According to the electronic disclosure system in the Financial Supervisory Service and the Korea Financial Investment Association, the total number of employees in top-ten securities houses is 24,703 as of the end of September, down 1,735 from 26,438 as of the end of September 2011.

 

The companies that saw the most layoffs are Samsung Securities and Tongyang Securities, whose employee numbers shrank to 3,163 and 2,481 from 3,733 and 3,044, respectively, in two years' time. The figure for Mirae Asset Securities was 1,784 from 2,166, with Hana Daetoo Securities cutting 208 from 1,887. Other companies such as Daishin Securities (175), Korea Investment & Securities (12), and Hyundai Securities (7) cut their payrolls, albeit in smaller numbers.

 

Stock analysts, whose fat paycheck was the object of envy, were not free from the wind of restructuring. The total number of analysts in all securities houses was cut 7.6 percent (96 persons) to 1,364 as of the end of September this year from 1,460 two years ago. Despite the harsh downsizing, it is expected the companies would keep reducing their employee numbers further because their commission incomes are still in decline.