[Editorial] Kakao’s woes 카카오의 우환(憂患) 김범수 카카오 창업자, 내달 11일까지 구속 기한 연장 Kakao f

[정승남세기영어교육연구회장]

[Editorial] Kakao’s woes 카카오의 우환(憂患)

김범수 카카오 창업자, 내달 11일까지 구속 기한 연장

Kakao founder’s arrest sparks worries over its sprawling businesses, outlook

카카오 창업자 구속으로 방만한 사업에 대한 우려와 전망

Chae Yun-hwan All News 07:03 July 26, 2024 The Korea Herald

Kakao's woes
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Kakao founder's arrest sparks worries over its sprawling businesses, outlook
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Kakao Corp., South Korea's biggest messenger operator, is confronting a major crisis after founder Kim Beom-su's arrest Tuesday for alleged stock price manipulation related to last year's takeover of K-pop powerhouse SM Entertainment.
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The incident opens up the potential of a leadership vacuum at Kakao, raising concerns about the impact on its sprawling affiliates as well as its restructuring and growth plans in the tech sector amid intensifying competition in artificial intelligence.
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Kakao's fall from grace could bring some of its ambitious expansion plans to a halt or delay key business decisions in a way that sends shocks to the country's broader IT sector. Kakao, which runs messenger app KakaoTalk and has 124 affiliates, is widely regarded as one of the country's top two tech giants, alongside Naver.
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The Seoul Southern District Court approved an arrest warrant for Kim after a hearing that follows weeks of questioning about his alleged role in manipulating SM shares.
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At the heart of the high-profile investigation is whether the mobile heavyweight and its executives, including Kim, artificially inflated the price of SM shares during a bidding war with Hybe, the entertainment corporation behind K-pop sensation BTS.
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Prosecutors allege that Kakao purchased 240 billion won ($173 million) of SM shares at prices higher than Hybe's offer on 553 occasions in February last year in an attempt to thwart Hybe's takeover attempt. Hybe, which had secured a 14.8 percent stake in SM Entertainment from its founder Lee Su-man, wanted to buy additional shares from minor shareholders at 120,000 won per share, but decided to pull out of the race after the SM share price rose.
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Kakao and Kakao Entertainment assumed control of SM Entertainment by acquiring a 39.87 percent stake in the company in March last year.
Kim, a self-made billionaire and first-generation entrepreneur, denied the allegations of illegal activities last week, saying, "I believe the truth will eventually come out."
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It remains uncertain how the investigation will play out at this point. What's certain, though, is that Kim's troubles will undermine Kakao's corporate reputation, delay the launch of its new AI service and affect its affiliates one way or another. Kim is the largest shareholder of Kakao Corp., and if Kim were found guilty and sentenced to a jail term, Kakao could lose its largest stockholder position in online-only lender Kakao Bank for regulatory reasons.
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It is also shocking to many industry watchers who have witnessed the meteoric rise from a tech venture to the 15th-largest conglomerate in the country, only to face a make-or-break corporate challenge.
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Aside from the SM stock price manipulation case, Kakao's rapid expansion into various businesses through aggressive mergers and acquisitions had invited much dispute, especially regarding its relentless intrusion into markets served by small businesses ranging from flower shops to hair salons. Some Kakao executives were also involved in stock option disputes, raising questions about the standard of ethics within the corporation.
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Under pressure from the government and the public, Kakao promised to streamline the structure of its affiliates in 2021, but it is still seen to be operating too many affiliates. Whenever a dispute has arisen, Kakao has pledged to overhaul its corporate structure and changed the official position of Kim. But it continued to depend on mergers and acquisitions for expansion and focused on managing its stock price rather than seeking innovative and tech-driven changes.
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To weather the current crisis, Kakao has to reshape itself by reviving its "venture entrepreneurship," the very hallmark of innovation that it has long neglected.
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(END)

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Kakao forms emergency management system following founder's arrest

Kim Na-young All News 16:09 July 25, 2024 Yonhap News

SEOUL, July 25 (Yonhap) -- Kakao Corp., the operator of South Korea's dominant mobile messenger, said Thursday it has decided to form an emergency management system to address the vacancy left by its founder, Kim Beom-su, following his recent arrest.
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Under the new system, CEO Chung Shin-a will serve as the acting chief of the management reform committee under Kakao's corporate alignment council, which comprises representatives from 13 affiliates of the company, according to company officials.
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The decision was made during a Kakao Group meeting held earlier Thursday, just two days after Kim was arrested on stock manipulation allegations.
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Kim is suspected of being involved in manipulating the stock price of K-pop powerhouse SM Entertainment during a bidding war last year, which Kakao won against Hybe. Hybe is the parent company of K-pop superband BTS' management agency, BigHit.
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Kim had been leading Kakao's management reform committee since its establishment in November last year to respond to mounting criticism over the alleged stock manipulation case involving the company's executives and monopolistic practices by its mobility affiliates.
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Kakao said it will continue to push ahead with management reform measures and the company's business plans to secure future growth engines, such as artificial intelligence services.
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Kim Beom-su (C), the founder of Kakao Corp., heads toward a courtroom for an arrest warrant hearing at the Seoul Southern District Court in the capital on July 22, 2024. (Yonhap)
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nyway@yna.co.kr
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(END)

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김범수 카카오 창업자, 내달 11일까지 구속 기한 연장

황현욱2024. 7. 30. 20:01 데일리안

김범수 카카오 경영쇄신위원장이 22일 오후 구속 전 피의자 심문(영장실질심사)을 마친 후 서울 양천구 남부지방법원을 나서고 있다. ⓒ연합뉴스

SM엔터테인먼트 인수 과정에서 시세를 조종한 혐의를 받는 카카오 창업자인 김범수 경영쇄신위원장의 구속 기간이 연장됐다.

서울남부지방법원은 자본시장법 위반 혐의를 받는 김 위원장에 대한 검찰의 구속 기한 연장 허가 신청을 인용했다고 30일 밝혔다.

형사소송법 제203조 및 제205조 1항에 따르면 검찰 수사 단계에서 피의자의 구속 기간은 10일이다. 이후 법원의 허가를 받아 추가로 1차례(최장 10일) 구속을 연장할 수 있다.

지난 23일 구속된 김 위원장의 구속 기한은 열흘 째인 다음 달 1일에 만료되는 상황이었지만, 법원 판단에 따라 김 위원장의 구속 기간은 20일 후인 8월 11일 자정으로 연장됐다.

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