Earnings by asset managers in South Korea soared during the third quarter of fiscal 2013 from a year earlier, largely due to a rise in commission income, the financial regulator said Tuesday.

A total of 84 asset management companies posted a combined net profit of 129 billion won ($120 million) in the October-December period, rising 30.5 percent from 98.9 billion won three months earlier, according to the Financial Supervisory Service. The companies close their books on March 31.

The stronger bottom line came as their commission income rose sharply to a combined total of 385 billion won during the cited period, up from 362 billion won the previous quarter, the FSS said.

That helped raise their operating revenues to 428 billion won from 384 billion won over the cited period, it said.

KB Asset Management Co. topped other rivals with a net profit of 37.5 billion won, followed by Mirae Asset Management Co. with 21.4 billion won, Brain Asset Management Co. with 9.5 billion won, and Samsung Asset Management Co. with 8.1 billion won.

Their average net capital ratio, a key barometer of financial soundness, stood at 553 percent at the end of December, up 23 percentage points from three months earlier, according to the watchdog.

As of the end of December, their total assets under management reached 628 trillion won, up 0.3 percent, or 2 trillion won, from three months earlier, the FSS added. (Yonhap)