Namgung Hoon, CEO of Kakao Games, "Will Actively Pursue M&A with IPO Funds"

"COVID-19 Crisis, an Opportunity for Domestic Game Companies"

Namgung Hoon, CEO of Kakao Games

[Asia Economy Reporter Jin-gyu Lee] Namgung Hoon, CEO of Kakao Games, stated on the 26th, "We will actively pursue mergers and acquisitions (M&A) to strengthen competitiveness using the funds secured through the listing."

Kakao Games held an online press conference on the same day to announce the company's core competencies, future business strategies, and vision.

At the conference, CEO Namgung said, "Kakao Games is the only domestic game company that possesses a powerful platform encompassing both mobile and PC online. We have grown into a solid game company by completing the value chain, including publishing and development capabilities."

He also added, "We are securing long-term growth engines through nurturing new businesses and will leap forward as a leading global company in Korea by actively targeting overseas markets." Furthermore, he emphasized, "We plan to use investment funds to further strengthen game development capabilities by acquiring additional domestic game developers."

Regarding the reason for going public, he explained, "Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many game developments worldwide have been delayed or halted, but stable game development is taking place domestically. Although the global situation is unstable, we judged that this could be an opportunity for domestic game companies."

Since its launch in 2016, Kakao Games has shown remarkable growth. It is pursuing continuous growth through top-tier publishing capabilities in Korea, development skills covering everything from hardcore to casual games, and nurturing new businesses in various fields. With this KOSDAQ listing, the company plans to transform into a global comprehensive game company.

In terms of performance, operating profit in the first half of this year recorded 28.7 billion KRW, showing a 63.7% growth compared to the same period last year. Net profit for the same period also increased by 264% to 27.8 billion KRW, and sales grew by 8.2% to 203 billion KRW. The compound annual growth rate (CAGR) over the past three years since 2017 reached 57%, and growth is expected to continue for the time being.

During this initial public offering (IPO), Kakao Games will manage up to 384 billion KRW in public offering funds based on the upper band. These funds will be used to strengthen game development capabilities, secure a lineup including new intellectual property (IP), and invest in expanding the global market.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.