South Korea

Shinhan Bank, South Korea’s largest lender by assets and market capitalization, stands head and shoulders above the crowd. Its financials speak to the strength of the Seoul-based lender, which posted a bigger profit than any of its peers in 2016, for the seventh year in a row, thanks to a sharp rise in interest and non-interest income.

Korea

The 28th annual Asiamoney Brokers Poll invited chief investment officers, fund managers and investment analysts to take part. Nearly 6,700 valid responses were received from voters representing fund management houses, insurance companies, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, hedge funds and wealth managers from around the world.

Within the space of a few weeks, Woori Bank, South Korea’s second-largest lender, was slammed in parliament, lost a chief executive and prompted an investigation into hiring practices that may suck in the entire financial industry. What happens next is anybody’s guess.

Korea Investment & Securities