South Korean web big Kakao — in the course of a number of investigations over antitrust and securities violations — has appointed a brand new CEO because it tries to show the ship round. Shina Chung, who had been working the corporate’s enterprise arm, is shifting to the highest position on the firm.
Chung will formally step into the position subsequent yr following the corporate’s subsequent board and shareholders’ assembly in March, in response to the corporate. She is going to change into the primary feminine CEO at Kakao, and her appointment is meant to sign that the corporate is now in pressing reform mode.
“I’ll perform lively and accountable administration” to satisfy the expectations and requirements of society, Chung stated in its assertion. “I can’t miss this chance for change as a result of Kakao doesn’t have a lot time.”
Kakao founder Beom-soo Kim had hinted that Kakao can be getting new management on Monday, at an inside assembly, noting, “Kakao has come to the purpose the place we should strive basic modifications. We’ll set up management to guide a brand new Kakao.”
Picture Credit: Kakao CEO nominee
Kakao, which operates a wildly well-liked superapp of the identical title, leads the nation in providers like messaging and Uber-like transportation on demand. But its place on the high has come at a worth.
In October, Kakao chief funding officer (CIO) Jae-Hyun Bae was arrested and accused of inventory worth manipulation after Kakao acquired Okay-pop company SM Leisure in August. If Kakao’s CIO and different execs get convicted, Kakao may very well be pressured to promote at the least 10% of its stake in its on-line banking unit, Kakao Financial institution.
Individually, simply final month, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol referred to as for a overview of the monopolistic practices of Kakao’s taxi-hailing unit, Kakao Mobility. The declare is that the corporate is manipulating algorithms in its app to favor assigning rides to Kakao-franchised taxi drivers, who subscribe to Kakao’s paid membership, over non-Kakao taxi drivers.
Korea’s antitrust regulator had already fined Kakao Mobility about $20.3 million for unfair service in February. Kakao Mobility, which has about 74% of the ride-hailing market within the nation as of September, individually is making an attempt to decrease the temperature round this controvery. At this time it introduced that it might decrease fee charges from 5% to 2.8% for taxi drivers, and that it plans to revise its membership scheme subsequent yr.
Based in 1995 in Jeju, South Korea, Kakao — which began out as an web search engine formally often known as Daum — has now change into South Korea’s tremendous app, providing the nation’s hottest messaging app, KakaoTalk, taxi-hailing service Kakao Mobility, on-line banking platform Kakao Financial institution, music streaming app Melon and webtoon platforms Tapas Media and Radish and extra. It has carried out aggressive M&A offers previously few years in South Korea and has world ambitions, too. Kakao has greater than 140 subsidiaries as of October.
Chung — who labored at Boston Consulting Group, eBay Asia and Naver previous to becoming a member of Kakao Ventures in 2014 to put money into native startups — may have her work minimize out for her.
