Bank of Korea Releases "Trends in Resident Foreign Currency Deposits for May 2025"
Resident foreign currency deposits rebounded after four months. This turnaround was attributed to an increase in investor deposits at securities firms and the temporary placement of overseas investment funds by some companies.
According to the "Trends in Resident Foreign Currency Deposits for May 2025" released by the Bank of Korea on June 23, resident foreign currency deposits at foreign exchange banks stood at $101.36 billion at the end of last month, an increase of $5.1 billion compared to the end of the previous month. Resident foreign currency deposits include foreign currency deposits held domestically by Korean nationals, domestic companies, foreigners who have resided in Korea for more than six months, and foreign companies operating in Korea.
Resident foreign currency deposits had previously turned upward to $101.3 billion in December last year, then shifted to a decline in February this year, and continued to decrease for three consecutive months.
By currency, dollar-denominated deposits, which account for the largest share, increased by $4.54 billion from the end of the previous month to $85.54 billion. A Bank of Korea official explained that the growth in dollar deposits was due to an expansion in investor deposits at securities firms, as well as the temporary placement of overseas investment funds by some companies.
Yen-denominated deposits rose by $560 million over the same period to $8.43 billion, mainly due to an increase in investor deposits at securities firms. In contrast, yuan-denominated deposits decreased by $190 million from the previous month to $980 million, as a result of reduced payments for current transactions.
By depositor, corporate deposits increased by $4.6 billion to $87 billion. Individual deposits rose by $500 million to $14.35 billion. By bank, domestic banks saw their deposit balances rise by $5.51 billion to $89.31 billion. In contrast, the balances at foreign bank branches decreased by $410 million to $12.05 billion.
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