When was Kakao founded?

Kakao was founded in 2010 and raised its 1st funding round 1 year after it was founded.

Where is Kakao located?

Kakao is headquartered in Jeju-si, South Korea.

How many employees does Kakao have?

As of Sep 30, 2026, the latest employee count at Kakao is 3246.

Is Kakao a funded company?

Kakao is a funded company, having raised an undisclosed amount across 8 funding rounds to date. The company's 1st funding round was a $***** Post IPO round, raised on Aug 29, 2011.

When was the latest funding round of Kakao?

Kakao's latest funding was a $***** Post IPO round on May 20, 2021, with participation from 0 investor.

Where does Kakao rank among its competitors?

Kakao ranks 3rd amongst 593 active competitors, of which 15 are funded. It stands 9th in terms of total funding among its competitors. The most recent competitor to raise funding was ByteDance, which secured $29.6B in Sep, 2026.

Who are the top competitors of Kakao?

Kakao's top competitors include ByteDance, Bending Spoons and NewBornTown. Among them, ByteDance secured the most recent funding round in September, 2026.

Kakao - 2026 Company Profile, Team, Funding & Competitors

Kakao is a public company based in Jeju-si (South Korea), founded in 2010 by Kim Beom-soo. It operates as an Online platform offering multi-category messaging and advertising applications. Kakao has raised an undisclosed amount in funding. The company has 593 active competitors, including 15 funded and 8 that have exited. Its top competitors include companies like ByteDance, Bending Spoons and NewBornTown.

Company Details

Online platform offering multi-category messaging and advertising applications. It provides services in the global mobile and internet markets based on human resources, technology, content, and competitive mobile traffic. It provides solutions ranging from messaging, news, advertising, gaming, e-commerce, and music.

Website: www.kakaocorp.com/page/
Social
Email ID: *****@kakaocorp.com
Phone Number: +82 **********

Key Metrics

Founded Year

2010

Location

Jeju-si, South Korea

Stage

Public

Latest Funding Round

Post IPO, May 20, 2021, $*****

Investors

GIC & 20 more

Ranked

3^rd among 593 active competitors

Employee Count

3,246 as on Sep 30, 2026

Investment & Acquisitions

Paymons & 23 more

Similar Companies

ByteDance & 750 more

Exit Details

Public

View Kakao's full profile

Kakao is associated with 2 legal entities given below:

Legal Entity Name	Date of Incorporation	Revenue	Latest Employee Count	Reports
KAKAO CIN: 50103342721 , Latvia, Deadpooled	Nov 10, 2010	€0 - €1M (As on Dec 31, 2018)	5 (As on Dec 31, 2017)	-
kakao corp CIN: 35720 , United States, Active	Feb 15, 1995	-	14178 (As on Dec 31, 2021)	-

Kakao got listed on Oct 15, 2010.

Click here to take a look at Kakao's IPO in detail

Kakao has raised funding over 8 rounds. Its first funding round was on Aug 29, 2011. Kakao has 21 institutional investors.

Here is the list of recent funding rounds of Kakao:

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Date of Funding	Funding Amount	Round Name	Post-Money Valuation	Revenue Multiple	Lead Investors	Other Investors
May 20, 2021	9421138	Post IPO	1980242	8449808	9317633	1988083
Jan 15, 2021	4501541	Post IPO	4490459	7403533	3267890	BlackRock
Jan 18, 2018	7938169	Post IPO	7926530	3019665	7692958	2002266

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View details of Kakao's funding rounds and investors

The founders of Kakao is Kim Beom-soo.

Here are the details of Kakao's key team members:

Kim Beom-soo: Co-Founder & Chairman of Kakao and founder of 1 other company.

View details of Kakao's Founder profiles and Board Members

Kakao's employee count trend

Kakao has 3,246 employees as of Sep 26. Here is Kakao's employee count trend over the years:

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Top competitors of Kakao include ByteDance, Bending Spoons and NewBornTown. Here is the list of Top 10 competitors of Kakao, ranked by Tracxn score:

Rank	Company Details	Short Description	Total Funding	Investors	Tracxn Score
1st	ByteDance 2012, Beijing (China), Series E	Developer of platforms for content creation, discovery, and mobile entertainment	$6.11B	HongShan, SoftBank Vision Fund & 67 others	76/100
2nd	Bending Spoons 2013, Milan (Italy), Public	Developer of mobile applications and AI-powered technologies	$840M	Baillie Gifford, Tamburi Investment Partners ... & 35 others	75/100
3rd	Kakao 2010, Jeju-si (South Korea), Public	Online platform offering multi-category messaging and advertising applications	-	GIC, Maverick Ventures & 19 others	74/100
4th	NewBornTown 2009, Beijing (China), Public	Mobile app studio developing personalization apps	$2M	CMBC Capital, Future Capital & 3 others	71/100
5th	AppsForBharat 2020, Bengaluru (India), Series C	Developer of a digital platform providing devotional and spiritual services	$53.4M	Elevation Capital, Peak XV Partners & 51 others	71/100
6th	OnMobile 2000, Bengaluru (India), Public	Mobile content services in APAC	$46.3M	Goldman Sachs, Argo Global Capital & 7 others	63/100
7th	Prime Trace 2020, Bengaluru (India), Series A	Developer of AI‑driven consumer mobile applications focused on community engagement, content creation, and social networking	$30M	Tiger Global Management, Sequoia Capital ... & 39 others	61/100
8th	AIBY Tech 2019, Miami (United States), Unfunded	A company that builds and develops tech businesses specializing in mobile-first products utilizing AI technology	-	-	58/100
9th	Lokal 2018, Bengaluru (India), Series B	Operator of digital platforms providing information and professional service access	$31.8M	India Quotient, 3one4 Capital & 22 others	57/100
10th	HubX 2022, Izmir (Turkey), Series C	Developer of mobile applications and provider of data analytics software	$50M	Point72	55/100

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Kakao has made 10 investments in companies including Paymons and Nota. Kakao has also acquired 14 companies including Seongnam Football Club and Kiwi Media Company.

Here is the list of investments & acquisitions:

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Date of Investment/Acquisition	Type	Company Name	Founded Year	Location
Feb 01, 2024	Investments	Paymons	2020	Seoul (South Korea)
Oct 20, 2023	Investments	Nota	2015	Seoul (South Korea)
Mar 02, 2023	Investments	Global Loyalty Network	2021	Seoul (South Korea)