[THE INVESTOR] China Merchants Securities, China’s eighth-largest brokerage firm, is set to begin operation in South Korea by the end of the year amid Korean investors’ growing interest in Chinese stocks ahead of the Shenzhen-Hong Kong market tie-up.

On Aug. 25, Seoul’s Securities and Futures Commission granted a preliminary license to the Chinese securities firm to set up business here. 
If China Merchants Securities receives the final approval from Korean financial regulators, it will become the first securities company based in mainland China to enter Asia’s fourth-largest country.

China Merchants Securities, which has some 8.3 trillion won (US$7.4 billion) in assets, plans to focus on brokerage services specializing in foreign markets, including China, and the sale of future products.

By Park Han-na (hnpark@heraldcorp.com)