Kakao has secured a $200 million investment from Ant Financial Services Group, parent company of Alipay, for its fintech business, the company said Tuesday.
| Kakao Pay's CEO appointee Ryu Young-joon |
"The combination of Ant Financial's global payment platform Alipay and numerous service networks along with Kakao's platform capabilities will generate more effective and convenient financial solutions for both businesses and consumers," Kakao Pay's CEO appointee Ryu Young-joon said.
"Korea is an important market for Ant Financial in its global expansion, and we see many opportunities in the market for innovative services and growth in mobile payments," Ant Financial International President Douglas Feagin said.
"Given Kakao's leading mobile platform and vast customer base, we believe we can bring Ant Financial's broad experience in digital payments and technology-driven financial services to offer exciting and innovative products to Korean customers."
Ant Financial provides multiple e-commerce services to over 450 million users. Users can call a taxi, book a hotel, purchase tickets, pay utility bills and make appointments with doctors.
Under the partnership with Kakao, Ant Financial plans to release its digital financial services in the Korean market through Kakao Pay. The Kakao subsidiary will be able to take advantage of Alipay's 34,000 channels of affiliated online and offline stores here, expanding the customer base of Kakao Pay.
"Kakao Pay plans to expand its online and offline payment coverage for Korean users," the company said. "Chinese visitors and tourists will be able to continue enjoying a broader payment experience in Korea with Alipay while Kakao Pay users will be able access more diverse digital financial services provided by Ant Financial."
Earlier in January, Kakao's board decided to establish a subsidiary for its mobile finance service Kakao Pay. Ryu, who currently leads Kakao's fintech division, has been appointed as the head of the new subsidiary.
"Under Ryu's leadership, Kakao Pay has attracted more than 14 million users," the company said. "It provides not only payment transaction services but also innovative and convenient mobile financial services including bill payment, remittance and membership management."