According to the ICT industry and the Financial Supervisory Service’s electronic disclosure system as of August 18, the average salary per Naver employee for the first half of the year was calculated at 92 million won.

For male employees, it reached 101 million won, surpassing the 100 million won mark for the first time. In the first half of last year, the average salary for male employees was 83 million won. This means that the average salary for men increased by nearly 20 million won in just one year. The average salary for female employees was 78 million won, up from 65 million won last year.

These amounts include RSU (Restricted Stock Units) payments and gains from exercised stock options.

However, even when excluding gains from exercised stock options, there was no significant difference in the average, indicating that stock option profits did not have a major impact on the overall average salary.

For Kakao, the average salary per employee for the first half was 58 million won. Male employees received an average of 64 million won, while female employees received 49 million won.

The average years of service at Kakao was 6 years, compared to 7.6 years at Naver. A Naver representative explained, "Salaries appear relatively high in the first half because performance bonuses are included."

It is known that at Naver, all employees are eligible to receive a performance bonus of up to 50% of their annual salary at the beginning of each year, based on the previous year’s work performance evaluation. On average, this bonus is said to be about 20% of the annual salary.

Another company official noted, "High salaries are likely concentrated among developer positions," adding that "salaries may vary depending on the type of work."