Kakao Mobility and Shinhan Bank Establish Partnership to Build Mobility Financial Services

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Nahum] Kakao Mobility announced on the 20th that it has signed a strategic partnership with Shinhan Bank to establish a financial service model specialized for the mobility market.

This collaboration began with a shared goal of achieving ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) management, which has recently become a key indicator of corporate management, and aims to jointly promote future-oriented growth in the mobility industry.

Starting with offering preferential loan interest rate products to taxi drivers affiliated with directly operated transportation companies and Kakao T Blue franchise taxi drivers, the plan is to develop financial services specialized for the mobility industry and promote joint marketing to expand benefits for users of both companies' platforms.

First, the two companies will provide a preferential loan interest rate program to taxi drivers and employees currently working at nine directly operated transportation companies under TJ Partners, a subsidiary of Kakao Mobility. Since the directly operated transportation companies implement a full management system, creating a stable working environment for taxi drivers, the intention is to offer interest rate benefits at the level provided to employees of excellent companies, thereby supporting the welfare improvement and livelihood stability of the drivers.

They will also actively develop dedicated financial services for Kakao T Blue franchise taxi drivers. A specialized financial service model will be introduced to help Kakao T Blue franchise member companies and their affiliated drivers operate their services more stably.

Benefits for mobile platform subscribers will also be enhanced. Joint marketing will be conducted at each company's online and offline customer touchpoints, and plans are underway to discover ways to strengthen customer benefits using the services of both companies, working together to increase customers and enhance brand value. Customized services that can be usefully applied, such as point vouchers, are also being discussed, considering platform usage patterns and preferences for users of the Kakao T and Shinhan SOL platforms.

Lee Changmin, Vice President (CFO) of Kakao Mobility, said, "Beyond providing practical financial benefits to various platform participants such as taxi drivers, users, and employees of directly operated transportation companies, we will establish a foundation to realize ESG in the mobility industry and prepare various measures to expand a culture of responsible management."