KakaoPay launches securities services

KakaoPay, a subsidiary of Kakao that offers a prepaid payment instrument, has taken its first step as a securities service provider. In an effort to attract clients, KakaoPay Securities is doing a promotion where it provides a pretax annual interest rate of five percent for those who transfer their KakaoPay deposit to a securities account. On Thursday, KakaoPay announced its acquisition of Baro Investment & Securities and a new name for the services, KakaoPay Securities, following the approval of the Financial Services Commission.

The South Korean company will be largely divided into two: newly-appointed CEO Kim Dae-hong will take charge of overall management and retail while former CEO of Baro Investment & Securities Yoon Gi-jeong will be responsible for corporate finance.

KakaoPay Securities aims to democratize investment and asset management. On the strength of KakaoTalk, Korea’s No. 1 messaging app, it plans to help people who are unfamiliar with financial services or do not have large sums of money to invest and make returns.

The new securities service provider has initiated a promotion for existing KakaoPay users, the first step towards the goal. It offers a pretax annual interest rate of five percent for deposits from 11,000 won up to one million won that is transferred from KakaoPay, which ends on May 31. Unlike the KakaoPay account, a securities account can store more than two million won, and deposits held in the securities account are protected up to 50 million won per person.

“By thinking out of the box and innovating the financial services, KakaoPay Securities will make investment more convenient and accessible,” CEO Kim said.


zion37@donga.com