Kakao Responds to 'Kakao Entertainment Sale Rumors' Saying "No Confirmed Plans"

Kakao announced on the 9th that there are no confirmed matters regarding the sale of Kakao Entertainment.

On the same day, Kakao disclosed, "To enhance the corporate value of the Kakao Group and ensure the continuous growth of Kakao Entertainment, we are reviewing various options with the shareholders of the company, but no matters have been finalized yet." It added, "We plan to re-disclose related information either when matters are confirmed or within one month."

There have been reports that Kakao is considering selling Kakao Entertainment amid a sluggish initial public offering (IPO) market. Although Kakao Entertainment has grown significantly through successive mergers and acquisitions (M&A), it has become difficult to properly recognize its corporate value and proceed with a listing. The total corporate value of Kakao Entertainment is estimated to be around 11 trillion won. As some acquired companies have experienced sharp declines in performance, the burden on the parent company Kakao has increased.

The largest shareholder of Kakao Entertainment is Kakao, holding 66.03%. The second-largest shareholder is the Hong Kong-based private equity fund Anchor Equity Partners, which owns about 12% of the shares. Chinese company Tencent also holds approximately 4.5% of the shares.

Kakao Pangyo Ajit, Seongnam, Gyeonggi. Photo by Jinhyung Kang

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