Operating proceeds of 1050 trillion…Aggressive investment with 58% of shares and 26% of bonds ahead of insurance premiums
![A citizen is passing by in front of the regional headquarters of the National Pension Service in Seoul. [Reporter Han Joo Hyung]](https://wimg.mk.co.kr/news/cms/202604/08/news-p.v1.20250209.330e6a3c101c411483772af03c1621e3_P1.jpg)
The National Pension Fund’s reserves have entered the era of 1,500 trillion won. In particular, it is notable that more than half of the reserves are filled with investment returns, not insurance premiums.
According to the National Pension Service on the 8th, as of the end of January 2026, the fund’s reserves were 1540.4 trillion won. Since the introduction of the system in 1988, the cumulative operating income has been KRW 1050.8 trillion, accounting for about 68% of the total reserves. The total amount of insurance premiums paid by the people is 928.5 trillion won, but the actual remaining principal is 489.6 trillion won as 438.9 trillion won is used for pension payments and management expenses. As a result, about two-thirds of the current fund has been accumulated as investment performance.
Operational performance continues to be good this year. The National Pension Service made 81.5 trillion won in profits in January. In terms of asset allocation, the share of stocks was the highest at 58.4%, followed by bonds at 26.0% and alternative investments such as real estate and infrastructure at 15.2%. It is interpreted as a result of a strategy that increased profitability by expanding the proportion of stocks and alternative investments, away from conservative bond-centered management in the past.
The composition of assets is concentrated in the financial sector. 1599.3 trillion won, or 99.9% of the total assets, is invested in financial assets such as domestic and foreign stocks and bonds, while the remaining 1.1 trillion won is used for welfare and other sectors.
In terms of expenditure, the amount paid as a pension so far since the establishment of the fund has been 425.4 trillion won, and the cost of operating and managing the fund is 13.5 trillion won.
The National Pension Service said, “We will manage the people’s retirement funds stably.” The status of fund management is disclosed on the website of the fund management headquarters every month.
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