[1mm Financial Talk] Kakao's Kim Beom-su Deposits 6.6 Billion Won in 0.1% Interest Account

Kim Beom-su, Head of Kakao Future Initiative Center

Kim Beom-su, founder of Kakao and head of the Future Initiative Center, recently deposited more than 6 billion KRW in Kakao Bank, sparking various speculations.

According to the Financial Supervisory Service's electronic disclosure system on the 11th, Kim deposited 6.6 billion KRW into a regular savings account at Kakao Bank on March 23. Considering the annual interest rate of the product Kim chose is 0.1%, it appears to be a demand deposit account. Under Article 26 of the Fair Trade Act, financial transactions exceeding 5 billion KRW with affiliates must be disclosed.

In the financial sector, there are various interpretations regarding the deposit of tens of billions of KRW into an account with only a 0.1% interest rate. One interpretation is that it is short-term standby funds rather than a deposit for interest income. For example, comprehensive asset management accounts (CMA) at securities firms, which allow demand deposits and withdrawals, offer interest rates in the 3% range.

Kim may have simply chosen Kakao Bank, an affiliate, rather than depositing the large sum in another bank. In fact, Kim and Yoon Ho-young, CEO of Kakao Bank, have a long-standing relationship. Moreover, although Kakao Bank initially started as a one-person task force (TF) led by CEO Yoon, it was launched in 2017 with Kim’s support. A senior official at a major commercial bank’s private banking center said, “Except in cases where a specific financial institution requested it, I have never seen tens of billions of KRW kept in a demand deposit account. It is quite rare.”

In very rare cases, wealthy individuals do this to save on financial income taxes. When financial income exceeds 20 million KRW, the excess financial income is combined with other income and subject to progressive income tax rates. Generally, if it is below 20 million KRW, separate taxation applies and the tax obligation ends. Assuming Kim’s deposit product holds 6.6 billion KRW for one year, the annual interest would be approximately 5,583,600 KRW (based on 15.4% interest tax). However, since Kim already earns substantial dividend income, this speculation is less likely.

Regarding this, a Kakao representative said, “Since it is a personal transaction, we do not know the detailed reasons.”

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