Kakao Corp’s finance affiliates KakaoBank and KakaoPay each posted their best-ever first-quarter results. The key feature was that both revenue diversification and a broader user base emerged at the same time, beyond simple growth in scale.

On May 7, the financial sector said KakaoBank posted net profit of 187.3 billion won for the first quarter, up 36.3 percent from a year earlier. KakaoPay posted net profit of 34.7 billion won, up 141.5 percent, as each set a quarterly record.

The two companies have different business structures, but user growth, diversified revenue sources and the expansion of data-based services appear to have commonly influenced the improved results.

KakaoBank’s non-interest income rose to 302.9 billion won, topping 300 billion won for the first time, and its share of operating revenue expanded to 37 percent. The shift continued toward a higher share of fee and platform-based income from an interest-centered structure.

User metrics also rose. In the first quarter, the number of customers was tallied at 27.27 million and monthly active users (MAU) at 20.32 million. Wider use of deposit products such as group accounts and the “Our Child Account,” as well as greater use of non-face-to-face services, is analysed to have affected new inflows. User growth also led to higher deposits. Deposit balances rose to 69.356 trillion won, up by more than 1 trillion won in three months.

KakaoPay also showed a business structure shift along with a steep growth rate. First-quarter revenue rose 41.7 percent from a year earlier to 300.3 billion won, and its operating profit margin entered double digits at 10.7 percent.

Platform revenue rose 67 percent, driven by advertising and telecommunications brokerage businesses. User data-based personalised services affected the increase in revenue.

Daily active users (DAU) rose 8 percent from a year earlier to 6.69 million, and transactions per user rose 35 percent. Activation of securities services, an expanded merchant base and stronger user benefits increased broadly across key service areas.

As a result, KakaoBank is showing a relatively stable growth trend through a larger user base and a more dispersed revenue structure. KakaoPay is showing improved growth and profitability at the same time, based on expansion across payments, finance and platforms.

KakaoPay CEO Won-geun Shin (신원근) said, “The data-based business model and new growth drivers have entered a full-fledged track.” He added, “We will firmly maintain overwhelming growth momentum so that technological innovation can lead to a rise in corporate value.”