Kakao Recommends Five New Board Members... Focus on Risk Management

Kakao Board Expands from 7 to 8 Members
Director Appointment Proposal to be Presented at the General Meeting on the 28th

Kakao, accelerating personnel renewal and organizational restructuring, is forming a new board of directors by appointing five new internal and external directors. They focused on risk management by appointing individuals from the legal, media, and advisory sectors.

According to the IT industry on the 12th, Kakao will propose the appointment of five director candidates, including CEO nominee Jeong Shin-ah, at the regular shareholders' meeting on the 28th of this month.

For internal directors, nominee Jeong and Kwon Dae-yeol, chairman of Kakao CA Council ESG Committee, and Cho Seok-young, head of CA Council Group Compliance Management Office, were recommended as candidates. This change follows the replacement of Hong Eun-taek, who was an internal director and CEO of Kakao, and the voluntary resignation of Bae Jae-hyun, Kakao’s Chief Investment Officer. CEO Bae is currently on trial over allegations of market manipulation related to SM Entertainment and has also stepped down from executive positions at major affiliates.

External director candidates include Professor Cha Kyung-jin of Hanyang University’s Management Information Systems Department and Ham Chun-seung, president of PH&Company. External director Shin Sun-kyung resigned for personal reasons with one year left in her term. She faced concerns over conflicts of interest as a member of the Financial Supervisory Service’s Sanctions Review Committee. This was because Kakao and Kakao Mobility were under investigation by the Financial Supervisory Service for allegations of market manipulation related to SM and accounting fraud, respectively. With some board members replaced, the number of external directors increased from four to five.

In forming the new board, Kakao emphasized risk management. Chairman Kwon Dae-yeol is a former editorial writer for the Chosun Ilbo. Since joining Kakao in 2018, he has served as head of communications, head of external relations (ER), and head of the Corporate Digital Responsibility (CDR) lab. He also chairs the Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) committee overseeing group risks. He is highly regarded for his crisis management expertise and ESG communication skills, which are essential for Kakao’s efforts to move away from controversies over harming small businesses and promote coexistence. Director Cho Seok-young is a legal professional and crisis management expert. He has experience as a senior prosecutor at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, conducting investigations in corporate and financial sectors. At Kakao, he served as head of the ERM office. The board appointed a legal expert to respond to the numerous judicial risks. The board stated, “He can provide advice to proactively review and prevent legal risks and offer legal insight and expertise from the perspective of ethical management.”

External director candidate Ham Chun-seung is an expert in investment and risk management. He has worked at global securities firms such as ING Bearing Securities and Citigroup Global Markets Securities and currently serves as president of the management consulting firm PH&Company. The board expects him to advise on proactively reviewing risks associated with Kakao’s expansion into new businesses and to provide opinions that can enhance corporate value. Professor Cha Kyung-jin has engaged in industry-academic cooperation and advisory activities with large corporations such as LG, Samsung, and GS, as well as financial institutions including KB, Woori, and Shinhan. As an expert in data and artificial intelligence (AI), he is expected to advise on matters Kakao should consider as a large corporation when pursuing new businesses.