Samsung Securities named S. Korea's best investment bank

Samsung Securities Co., South Korea's largest brokerage by market cap, was named South Korea's best investment bank, a Hong Kong publication on financial and capital markets said Tuesday, citing its efforts to move toward the international market. "Samsung Securities is clearly the most outward-looking of Korea's investment banking and brokerage firms, and its domestic corporate finance and capital markets teams are well-respected by international bankers," FinanceAsia said in a statement. "It is also the best brokerage firm, especially because of its superior research capability, which enables it to attract deal flow in a highly competitive environment," said FinanceAsia, which organizes annual awards for Asia's financial industry. The monthly magazine said Samsung Securities stood out among the South Korean firms that are encouraged to expand beyond the domestic market by the South Korean government, for its "singular drive towards achieving its regional ambitions." Samsung Securities was a consistent performer in the debt and equity primary capital markets and provided a range of advisory services for its blue-chip corporate clients, it added. Samsung Securities said it aims to rank among the top five Asian firms in the industry by 2015 and the top 10 in the world by 2020. In line with its goal, the firm has continued to expand its Hong Kong office, which was set up in 2009 and now employs 42 analysts, 24 traders and 10 investment bankers. While the Hong Kong office will be the base for its regional operations largely due to its proximity to the Chinese mainland companies that it has already helped to raise capital, Samsung is staffing new offices in Singapore and Taiwan. Company officials said the number of Samsung's corporate clients has jumped from fewer than 30 in mid-2009 to around 250 in 2011.