On Monday, data revealed that the issuance of asset-backed securities (ABSs) in South Korea skyrocketed 47.4 percent from the same period one year prior during the third quarter of the year. The financial regulator attributed the substantial increase to a sharp rise in mortgage-backed securities (MBSs) issued by the Korea Housing Finance Corp.
The Financial Supervisory Service’s (FSS) data showed that the total amount of ABSs issued in the July-September period came to 17.6 trillion won (US$12.3 billion). ABSs are securities based on assets such as mortgages, auto loans, credit card receivables and student loans.
The housing firm issued 12.3 trillion won worth of MBSs during the quarter, an 8.3 trillion won increase from the same period in the prior year. Meanwhile, ABS issuance by financial companies dropped 2.1 trillion won to 3.9 trillion won, and issues by nonfinancial companies also decreased 500 billion won to 1.5 trillion won.
As of the end of September, outstanding ABSs totaled 246 trillion won, a 6.7 percent, or 15.5 trillion won, increase from the same time the previous year.