Kakao Joins '100 Million KRW Average Annual Salary' Club... "Impact of Stock Options"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Koo Eun-mo] Kakao has joined the ranks of companies with an 'average employee annual salary of 100 million KRW.'

According to Kakao's business report on the 18th, the average annual salary per employee among the company's 2,747 employees last year was 108 million KRW. This represents a 35% increase from 80 million KRW in 2019.

A company official stated, "The total annual salary amount includes salaries, bonuses, and stock options granted to executives and employees, so the amount is influenced by various factors," adding, "It appears that the exercise of stock options had a significant impact in 2020."

Previously, Naver and NCSoft announced through their business reports that their employees' average annual salary exceeded 100 million KRW last year. Among the executives, Co-CEO Yeo Min-soo received a total of 6.48 billion KRW. This included 4.405 billion KRW from stock option exercise gains, 1.624 billion KRW in bonuses, and 450 million KRW in salary. Yeo was not included in last year's disclosure as his 2019 salary was below 500 million KRW. Co-CEO Cho Soo-yong received 3.475 billion KRW, and founder and Chairman of the Board Kim Beom-su received 532 million KRW, respectively.

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