Kakao Transitions to Dual CEO System with Namgoong Hoon and Hong Euntaek

Hong Eun-taek, Co-CEO of Kakao

[Asia Economy Reporter Seungjin Lee] Kakao held a board meeting on the 14th and newly appointed Hong Euntaek, Co-Head of Kakao Community Alignment, as a co-CEO of Kakao.

Kakao explained that the transition to a co-CEO system aims to achieve two goals: strengthening Kakao's social responsibility and enhancing corporate value.

Co-CEO Hong Euntaek will focus on fulfilling social responsibilities by strengthening ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) management, which he has been overseeing at the Community Alignment Center (CAC), and by leading sustainable growth strategies. Co-CEO Namgung Hoon will continue to oversee Kakao’s services and business as before, dedicating himself to increasing corporate value by driving global expansion. Hong Euntaek will maintain his current roles as Co-Head of the Community Alignment Center and Chairman of the Kakao Impact Foundation.

In April this year, Kakao announced plans to create a 300 billion KRW mutual growth fund over five years at the community level to achieve sustainable growth with Kakao partners such as small business owners, creators, and platform workers. Kakao is also actively promoting mutual growth projects such as the ‘Sosin Sangin’ project, which supports the digital transformation of traditional market merchants, and the ‘Jegabeochi’ project, which addresses inventory issues in agricultural and marine products.

From an ESG management perspective, Kakao appointed the country’s first ‘Digital Accessibility Officer (DAO)’ among domestic IT companies to strengthen digital accessibility. Additionally, Kakao declared the ‘Active Green Initiative’ to actively address environmental issues and is pursuing a net-zero goal to achieve zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040.

Co-CEO Hong Euntaek stated, “Based on the innovation and value Kakao has created so far, we will find ways to contribute to society using our technology and services,” adding, “We will play a role in making Kakao recognized as a necessary presence in society and a company that continues to grow its business.”

Co-CEO Namgung Hoon said, “Going forward, together with Co-CEO Hong Euntaek, we will do our best to expand Kakao globally and strengthen social responsibility, sometimes working individually and sometimes collaboratively.”

Meanwhile, Co-CEO Hong Euntaek joined Kakao in 2012 as Vice President of Content Services, launching KakaoPage and the joint order platform Kakao Makers. From 2018 for three years, he served as CEO of Kakao Commerce, growing its transaction volume more than fourfold. Since early this year, he has been serving as Co-Head of the Community Alignment Center and an internal director at Kakao, overseeing ESG management of the Kakao community and contemplating its social role.

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