Kakao Reports Record Annual Revenue of KRW 8.1 Trillion for 2025

Seoul, South Korea - Kakao Corp. reported annual revenue of KRW 8,099 billion (US$ 6.09 billion) for 2025, a 3 percent increase from the previous year. Operating profit rose 48 percent to KRW 732 billion (US$ 550 million).

Fourth-quarter revenue reached KRW 2,133 billion (US$ 1.60 billion), up 9 percent. Operating profit for the quarter was KRW 203 billion (US$ 153 million), up 136 percent, with an operating margin of 9.5 percent.

Platform division revenue rose 17 percent to KRW 1,223 billion (US$ 920 million).

Revenue from Talk Biz, the company’s business messaging service, increased 13 percent to KRW 627 billion (US$ 471 million), while commerce revenue grew 8 percent to KRW 253 billion (US$ 191 million).

Quarterly GMV reached KRW 3,000 billion (US$ 2.26 billion).

Revenue from other platform services increased 30 percent to KRW 524 billion (US$ 394 million).

Content division revenue was flat at KRW 911 billion (US$ 685 million), with story revenue down 5 percent and games revenue down 40 percent to KRW 98 billion (US$ 74 million).

Operating expenses rose 3 percent to KRW 1,930 billion (US$ 1.45 billion).

The company’s workforce decreased by 649 employees to 15,856.

The company returned to an annual net profit of KRW 526 billion (US$ 396 million) after a KRW 162 billion (US$ 122 million) loss in 2024.

The company posted a fourth-quarter net loss of KRW 39 billion (US$ 29 million) due to impairment charges of KRW 139 billion.

Shina Chung, chief executive of Kakao, said the company would focus on artificial intelligence in 2026, with plans to launch "Kanana in KakaoTalk" in the first quarter.