Strong won sends personal dollar deposits to highest figure since 2021
The trend appears to reflect increased bargain hunting, caused by the won's gains. The dollar-won rate averaged 1,342.6 won in October, the lowest monthly average since September 2024, and 849 per 100 yen over the same period.
Exchange rates are displayed at a currency exchange in Myeongdong in Jung District, central Seoul, on Oct. 18.NEWS1
Koreans are stocking up on dollars and yen as the won strengthens, sending individual foreign currency deposits at the country’s five biggest banks to multiyear highs.
Personal dollar deposits at KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Hana, Woori and NH Nonghyup totaled $14.23 billion as of lastThursday, the five banks said on Sunday. That is the highest figure since December 2021, when it stood at $14.65 billion. Personal yen deposits also rose to 265.6 billion yen ($1.7 billion), the highest amount since November 2024.
“A lot of people around me are saying that the exchange rate is the best that it’s ever been and that we should exchange money now,” an office worker surnamed Lee said. “I can use [the money] when I travel later, and I think that [the strategy] works as an investment too.”
Lee bought dollars and yen last week after the won strengthened to the low 1,300s against the dollar and to the 830s per 100 yen.
The trend appears to reflect increased bargain hunting, caused by the won’s gains. The dollar-won rate averaged 1,342.6 won in October through Friday, the lowest monthly average since September 2024, data from the Bank of Korea (BOK) showed. The won strengthened up to 1,328.9 against the dollar in intraday trading on Friday.
The won also averaged 849 per 100 yen over the same period, its strongest against the Japanese currency since December 2007.
Strong chip exports have increased the supply of dollars in Korea, and expectations that the central bank will raise its base rate again have added to the won’s gains. The BOK raised its base rate by 0.25 percentage points at both its July and August meetings, bringing it to 3 percent.
People walk past a currency exchange in Myeon-dong in Jung District, central Seoul, on Oct. 11.NEWS1
Personal borrowing is also climbing again, and the stock market’s slide has fed talk that investors are once more borrowing to buy shares.
The Kospi fell for seven straight sessions through Thursday and closed at 5,554.22, down 20.7 percent over the run. It rebounded 2.05 percent to 5,668.05 on Friday.
Personal credit loans at the five banks stood at 109.7 trillion won ($82.1 billion) as of Thursday, up 1.5 trillion won, or 1.4 percent, from the end of September. Balances on minus accounts, revolving credit lines that let borrowers draw cash up to a set limit, reached 44.5 trillion won, the highest since August 2022.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
