Wallets/kakaobank
KakaoBank
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Overview
KakaoBank is Korea's largest internet-only lender [1, 2, kr-cro]. End of 2025 baseline: 26.7M customers + 20M monthly active users + +1.82M new customers added in 2025 — reaching ~50% of Korea's population.
Distinctive KakaoBank positioning [1, 3]:
- Korea's largest internet-only bank (KakaoBank #1; K bank 15.5M #2; Toss Bank 12M+ #3)
- 2025 record results: Annual operating profit 649.4 billion won + net profit 480.3 billion won (+7.0% + +9.1% YoY)
- Deep KakaoTalk integration: Vast, readily accessible customer base + reduced customer acquisition costs (distinctive Kakao-ecosystem advantage)
- 2027 targets: 30M customers + total deposits 90 trillion won (per KakaoBank 2027 plan)
History
2015 — Korea introduces internet-only bank license framework — distinctive Korean internet-bank regulatory innovation.
2016 — KakaoBank founded through collaboration between Korea Investment Holdings + Kakao Corp.
July 2017 — KakaoBank launches as Korea's 2nd internet-only bank (after K bank Apr 2017).
2017-2024 — Mass Korean adoption [2]: KakaoBank surpasses K bank to become Korea's largest internet-only bank.
2025 — 26.7M customers + 20M MAU + record 2025 results (operating profit 649.4B KRW + net profit 480.3B KRW; +7.0% + +9.1% YoY) [1, 3].
2026 May — KakaoBank targets 30M users via AI + global push [2] (Seoul Economic Daily coverage).
Ownership & operator
Operating entity: KakaoBank Corp. (KRX: 323410; KOSPI-listed since Aug 2021).
Major shareholders: Kakao Corp (founding parent) + Korea Investment Holdings (KIH; founding partner) + various Korean institutional + KRX public float.
Regulators: FSC (Financial Services Commission of Korea) + FSS (Financial Supervisory Service).
Technical integration
| Layer | Description |
|---|---|
| Channels | KakaoBank app (iOS + Android; primary internet-only bank channel) + KakaoTalk integration (deep messaging-app integration) + KakaoBank cards |
| Identifiers | Phone + email + card number + Korean resident registration number |
| KR rail | zero-pay (Korea Financial Telecommunications & Clearings Institute KFTC instant payments + ZeroPay national QR) |
| License | Internet-only bank (Korea internet-only bank license; 2nd Korean internet bank after K bank) |
| Sub-products | KakaoBank Account + KakaoBank Cards + KakaoBank Savings + KakaoBank Mortgage + KakaoBank Loans + KakaoBank Investments + KakaoBank Insurance + KakaoBank for Children + KakaoBank Mini (minor product) + KakaoBank-Together (P2P) + KakaoBank Foreign Currency Exchange |
| Deep KakaoTalk integration: Distinctive Kakao messaging-app ecosystem reduces CAC + enables vast customer base |
Users & growth
- 26.7M customers (+1.82M added in 2025)
- 20M monthly active users
- ~50% of Korean population reached
- 2025 annual operating profit: 649.4B KRW (+7.0% YoY)
- 2025 annual net profit: 480.3B KRW (+9.1% YoY)
- 2027 targets: 30M customers + 90T KRW total deposits
Use cases
Korean retail + savings + mortgage + loans + investments + insurance via KakaoBank app + KakaoTalk integration + KakaoBank cards; ZeroPay national QR + KFTC instant payments; deep Kakao ecosystem integration; KakaoBank-Together (P2P) + KakaoBank for Children + KakaoBank Mini + KakaoBank Foreign Currency Exchange.
Implementations & partners
Operator: KakaoBank Corp. (KRX: 323410).
Major shareholders: Kakao Corp (founding parent) + Korea Investment Holdings (KIH; founding partner) + various Korean institutional + KRX public float.
Major Korean banking + payment competitors:
- [[k-bank-korea]] (K bank Korea; 1st Korean internet-only bank Apr 2017; 15.5M users end 2025; BC Card 34% controlling stake)
- [[toss-bank]] (Batch 33 covered; Toss Bank; 3rd Korean internet-only bank; 12M+ users end 2025)
- [[kb-kookmin-bank]] (KB Star Banking; KB Kookmin Bank; Korea's largest traditional bank with 30M+ retail customers)
- [[naver-financial]] (Batch 32 covered; Naver Financial / Naver Pay)
- [[kakao-pay]] (Kakao Pay; Kakao Corp's payment arm; sister entity)
- Shinhan Bank + Hana Bank + Woori Bank + NongHyup Bank (NH Bank) + IBK Industrial Bank of Korea (Korean traditional banks)
- [[toss-payments]] + [[payco]] (Batch 31 covered) + [[samsung-pay]] (KR payments)
Kakao ecosystem sisters: Kakao Corp + KakaoTalk + Kakao Pay + Kakao Games + Kakao Mobility + others.
Regulators: FSC + FSS.
Fun facts
- Korea's largest internet-only bank — 26.7M customers + 20M MAU + ~50% of Korean population reached.
- 2016 founded by Korea Investment Holdings + Kakao Corp collaboration.
- July 2017 launch as Korea's 2nd internet-only bank (after K bank).
- 2025 record annual operating profit: 649.4B KRW + net profit 480.3B KRW (+7.0% + +9.1% YoY).
- +1.82M new customers added in 2025.
- Deep KakaoTalk integration — distinctive Kakao messaging-app ecosystem reduces CAC.
- 2027 targets: 30M customers + 90T KRW total deposits.
- August 2021 KRX IPO (KOSPI: 323410).
Comparison
| Feature | KakaoBank | [[k-bank-korea]] (Korea 1st internet-only bank rival; 15.5M users end 2025) | [[toss-bank]] (Batch 33; Korea 3rd internet-only bank rival; 12M+ users end 2025) | [[kb-kookmin-bank]] (Korea's largest traditional bank rival; 30M+ retail customers) | [[bunq]] (EU #2 neobank comparable) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operator | KakaoBank Corp. (KRX: 323410; Kakao Corp founding parent + Korea Investment Holdings + Korean institutional + KRX public float) | K Bank (KT + BC Card 34% controlling + Woori Bank + NH Investment & Securities + 20 shareholders) | Toss Bank (Viva Republica) | KB Kookmin Bank (KB Financial Group; KRX: 105560) | bunq B.V. (Amsterdam; Ali Niknam + Series A investors) |
| Type | Korea's largest internet-only bank + KakaoTalk integration + ~50% Korean population reached | Korea's 1st internet-only bank + telecom (KT) + BC Card processing rails | Korea's 3rd internet-only bank + Toss Bank | Korea's largest traditional bank + KB Star Banking + 30M+ retail customers + Wallet service (Jun 2025) | EU #2 neobank + 30 European countries + flexible crypto staking |
| Country | Korea | Korea | Korea | Korea | 30 European countries |
| Users | 26.7M customers (end 2025) + 20M MAU; +1.82M added in 2025; ~50% Korean population | 15.5M users (end 2025) | 12M+ users (end 2025) | 30M+ retail customers | 20M users (end 2025) |
| Distinctive | 2016 KakaoBank founded by Korea Investment Holdings + Kakao Corp collaboration; Jul 2017 launch as 2nd Korean internet-only bank; deep KakaoTalk integration reduces CAC; 2025 record results 649.4B KRW operating profit + 480.3B KRW net profit (+7.0% + +9.1% YoY); 2027 targets 30M customers + 90T KRW deposits; Aug 2021 KRX IPO | Korea's 1st internet-only bank (Apr 2017); BC Card 34% controlling stake; KT telecom muscle + BC Card processing rails; net profit fell 12% 2025 + NIM collapsed nearly full percentage point | Korea's 3rd internet-only bank | Korea's largest traditional bank; KB Star Banking Wallet service (Jun 2025) integrates QR payment + ZeroPay + KB Pay + Health Insurance QR | 2012 founding by Ali Niknam; Sep 2025 first European challenger bank with flexible crypto staking |
Status
Active, Korea's largest internet-only bank [1, 3]:
- KakaoBank Corp. (KRX: 323410) since 2016 (founded by Korea Investment Holdings + Kakao Corp collaboration); July 2017 launch; August 2021 KRX IPO.
- 26.7M customers + 20M MAU (end 2025) — ~50% Korean population reached.
- 2025 annual operating profit 649.4B KRW + net profit 480.3B KRW (+7.0% + +9.1% YoY).
- 2027 targets: 30M customers + 90T KRW total deposits.
- Deep KakaoTalk integration distinctive Kakao messaging-app ecosystem advantage.
- FSC + FSS regulated.
Sources
- 1 KakaoBank posts record profit for 2025 — Korea Times Feb 2026
- 2 KakaoBank Targets 30M Users via AI Global Push — Seoul Economic Daily May 2026
- 3 Kakao Bank Hits New Record First 9 Months of 2025 — GL Insight
- 4 KakaoBank — Wikipedia
- kr-cro In-corpus:
reports/countries/KR-south-korea.md
Source
Biography extracted from kakaobank.md. See matrix.md for standards-support matrix if present.