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[Alpha Biz=(Chicago) Reporter Kim Jisun] As Kakao Pay was sent to the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office on charges of receiving illegal rebates, a red light was lit on its push for a new project.
According to financial authorities on the 20th, Kakao Pay is not expected to hold more than a 10% stake in other financial companies for the time being. This is because each industry law usually considers shareholders who hold more than 10% of the shares as major shareholders and regulates them to undergo a major shareholder eligibility review. Kakao Pay controls Kakao Pay Securities (67.39% stake as of the end of June) and Kakao Pay Insurance (60.00%), which means it cannot own other financial companies and make limited investments until it is cleared of illegal rebates.
It is also difficult to enter a business that can be operated only after obtaining permission. An official from the financial authorities said, "The authorities put the licensing review on hold when projects that require licensing in areas where there is an investigation or legal dispute."
Above all, the biggest risk is that it is likely to put a brake on overseas expansion. Kakao Pay has joined hands with Alipay early on to expand its business in Japan and China.
Kakao Pay is already in danger of failing to acquire Seibert, a U.S. securities firm. The move came as Seibert defined the prosecution's investigation into SM Entertainment's stock price manipulation by Kakao's management, the parent company, as a "significant negative impact" that makes it difficult to make an acquisition deal. The judicial risk of major shareholders has become a reality, and the authorities analyzed that the transfer of Kakao Pay will have a greater negative impact than the risk.
AlphaBIZ 김지선(stockmk2020@alphabiz.co.kr)
