Kakao Brain
Scope
Date
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Banking & Finance
Hana Financial partners with Line to launch digital bank in Indonesia
Naver Corp.’s Japan-based messaging app affiliate Line Corp. is rapidly expanding its digital banking business in Asian countries outside Kore...
Jun 13, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Insurance
Kakao enters insurance sector for synergy with its online platforms
Kakao Corp.’s ambition to become an insurer is gradually becoming a reality. The platform giant’s application to start an insurance busi...
Jun 11, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Banking & Finance
Toss Bank to compete with K Bank, Kakao Bank from September
Toss Bank in September will enter the race of internet-only banks in South Korea as the third player, competing against K Bank and Kakao Bank. Toss ...
Jun 11, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Venture capital
NPS joins in TPG-led $125 mn funding for Kakao Mobility
The National Pension Service has committed $100 million to a TPG consortium that recently raised $116.8 million to invest in Kakao Mobility Co., Sou...
Jun 10, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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E-commerce
Kakao's fresh e-commerce strategy puts Naver, Coupang on guard
South Korea’s mobile platform Kakao Corp. is set to shake up the country's e-commerce market in the second half of the year with the launch of...
Jun 07, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Enterprise value
Kakao just behind rival Naver in market cap, may overtake soon
South Korean mobile platform giant Kakao Corp.’s enterprise value is rising backed by its strong business performance, threatening to overtake...
Jun 03, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Mergers & Acquisitions
SM Entertainment emerges as next flashpoint for Kakao, Naver rivalry
As SM Entertainment Co., the label behind the global K-pop phenomenon, is up for grabs in the M&A market, the battle heats up between the countr...
Jun 01, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean startups
K-pop content platforms team up to take lead in community market
Platform operators targeting global K-pop fans are mired in fierce competition as companies team up to vie for the lead in the fan community platfor...
May 31, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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OTT streaming
Kakao joins OTT race with INISOFT acquisition
Kakao Corp. is entering the over-the-top (OTT) streaming market. According to investment banking sources on May 27, Kakao’s entertainment and ...
May 27, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Webtoons
Concurrent deal closings by Kakao, Naver: Mere coincidence?
Early this month, when Anchor Equity Partners was in intense negotiations with Kakao Corp. over the terms of its 600 billion won ($530 million) inve...
May 24, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Webtoons
Kakao Japan secures over $500 mn from Anchor Equity; valuation tops $7 bn
Kakao Corp.’s Japanese unit is set to secure 600 billion won ($530 million) from South Korea-based private equity firm Anchor Equity Partners....
May 20, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Mergers & Acquisitions
Naver vs Kakao: Intense rivalry to extend beyond Asia
South Korea's two online giants Naver Corp. and Kakao Corp. have completed their respective acquisitions of storytelling platforms in the US and Can...
May 11, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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IPOs
Kakao Pay values itself at above-consensus $14 bn
Kakao Pay Corp., aiming to list on South Korea's main stock exchange this year, has valued itself at as much as 16 trillion won ($14.4 billion), or ...
Apr 27, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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IPOs
Fintech platform Kakao Pay applies for Kospi IPO
Kakao Pay Corp., a unit of South Korea's largest mobile messaging app Kakao Corp., submitted an application for its initial public offering with the...
Apr 26, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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IPOs
Kakao Bank applies for preliminary review of 2021 IPO
Kakao Bank, South Korea's No.1 mobile banking app., has kicked off the process to go public by applying for a preliminary review of its stock market...
Apr 15, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Tech, Media & Telecom
Naver, Kakao vie for Korean web novel platform
Naver Corp. and Kakao Corp., South Korea's two online giants, are competing to acquire Munpia Inc., their smaller domestic rival in the web novel ma...
Apr 15, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Platform valuations
Kakao Entertainment’s enterprise value seen above $8.9 billion
Kakao Entertainment Corp. is working to make a trading debut on the domestic bourse in the latter part of this year or in 2022 at the latest. And th...
Apr 09, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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E-commerce
Kakao to buy fashion app, pushing aside eBay Korea
Kakao Corp., South Korea's top mobile messaging app operator, is set to acquire a majority stake in Zigzag, a domestic online fashion platform targe...
Apr 08, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Kakao Japan seeks $446 million from Anchor Equity
Kakao Corp.’s Japanese unit, which operates Japan’s largest webtoon platform Piccoma, is in talks to attract as much as 500 billion won ...
Apr 06, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Digital contents
Kakao in talks to buy US fiction app in heated IP rivalry
South Korea's mobile giant Kakao Corp. is in negotiations to buy the management rights of US-based mobile fiction startup Radish Fiction for around ...
Apr 04, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Future mobility
Google to buy $50 mn new shares in Kakao Mobility
Google Inc. will acquire 56.5 billion won ($50 million) worth of new Kakao Mobility Corp. shares, in a strategic investment in the South Korean mobi...
Apr 01, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Venture capital
GS Galtex to partner with Kakao for mobility services
South Korea's GS Caltex Corp., aiming to become a logistics platform, will invest around 30 billion won ($26 million) in Kakao Mobility Corp. to str...
Mar 31, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Earnings
Kakao’s private affiliates post record growth in 2020
South Korean tech giant Kakao’s unlisted subsidiaries have posted record-high growth figures for the previous financial year. According to Kak...
Mar 19, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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K-pop
Spotify, Kakao settle licensing dispute; K-pop returns to platform
Spotify Technology S.A., the world's largest music streaming service, has reached a licensing agreement with Kakao Entertainment Corp., to make musi...
Mar 11, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Future mobility
Kakao forays into pet taxi service; buys Pet Me Up
South Korea-based Kakao Mobility Corp., a subsidiary of mobile giant Kakao Corp., has acquired the country's leading pet taxi service, Pet Me Up, in...
Mar 09, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean stock market
Kakao to split stock 5-for-1 after share price hits record high
Kakao Corp. will split its stock on a five-for-one basis in April, which the South Korean mobile messaging app giant said would make the stock more ...
Feb 26, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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IPOs
Kakao's edtech startup eyes 2022 listing
South Korea-based edtech startup Yanadoo is the latest affiliate of Kakao Corp., the country's largest messaging app operator, to prepare for an ini...
Feb 22, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Pre-IPOs
Carlyle seals $200 mn investment in Kakao Mobility
The Carlyle Group has agreed to buy $200 million worth of new shares in Kakao Mobility Corp. as a pre-IPO investment in the transportation arm of So...
Feb 18, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Earnings
Kakao hits all-time earnings high; tops $3.5 bn in revenue
South Korea-based mobile platform giant Kakao Corp. has posted an all-time earnings high for last year, thanks to robust growth of its core operatio...
Feb 09, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Earnings
Kakao hits all-time high on earnings; tops $3.5 bn in revenue
South Korea-based mobile platform giant Kakao Corp. has reported an all-time high on last year's earnings, thanks to its core operations posting rob...
Feb 09, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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