[Edaily Reporter Kang Min-koo ] kakaopay(377300)has achieved record-breaking financial results as it expands its business structure beyond a “payment platform” to become a “financial platform.” Analysts say the company has entered a phase of profitability-driven growth, driven by the combined effects of growth in online and offline payments, data-driven financial services, and improved performance from its subsidiaries.

kakaopay announced on the 4th that it recorded consolidated revenue of 335.1 billion won, operating profit of 58.6 billion won, and net income of 49.6 billion won for the second quarter of this year. Revenue increased by 40.6% year-over-year, while operating profit surged by 528.2%. These figures represent the company’s best-ever quarterly results.

◇ Payments, Finance, and Platforms Grow for Three Consecutive Quarters

Growth was also evenly distributed across business segments. Revenue from payment services rose 13% year-over-year to 141.4 billion won, driven by growth in online, offline, and international payments. Revenue from financial services surged 75% to 175.2 billion won, fueled by growth in the lending, insurance, and investment sectors. Revenue from platform services also increased by 44% to 18.5 billion won.

kakaopay explained that its strategy of expanding from a payment-centric business structure to a finance- and data-driven platform is yielding results.

In the online payments segment, the expansion of external merchant partnerships yielded positive results. Revenue from external merchants rose 22% year-over-year, and their share of total online payment revenue expanded to 65%. Analysts attribute this success to the company’s strategy of leveraging its proprietary payment data and MyData to provide personalized benefits to users.

Growth in offline payments also continued. The number of monthly offline payment users in the second quarter reached 6 million, a 21% increase year-over-year, and the cumulative number of transactions for the quarter rose 31% to 150 million. Ongoing benefits such as “Good Deal” and expanded brand partnerships drove this user growth.

In the financial services sector, “kakaopay Score,” a data-driven credit scoring model, is emerging as a key growth driver. kakaopay Score is an alternative credit scoring model that uses payment and financial data to assess the creditworthiness of users with limited traditional financial history.

Currently, kakaopay has signed adoption agreements with 12 financial institutions and plans to expand to more than 20 financial institutions by the end of this year. For financial institutions, this structure enables them to acquire new customers, while for kakaopay, it leads to the expansion of financial services within its platform.

The growth of its subsidiaries also contributed to the improved performance. As its financial affiliates—including those in insurance and investment—continue to expand their businesses, kakaopay is moving beyond a model centered on payment fees and strengthening its structure to generate revenue across the full spectrum of financial services.

kakaopay emphasized that these results stem not from temporary changes in market conditions, but from the advancement of data-driven services and the strengthening of the platform’s competitiveness.

Shinwon, CEO of kakaopay, stated, “We have entered a phase of qualitative growth, achieving both growth and profitability through balanced expansion across our core businesses,” adding, “We will continue to lay the foundation for sustainable growth by enhancing service competitiveness and collaborating with our financial subsidiaries.”

kakaopay is expected to accelerate the expansion of financial services leveraging payment data. The key challenge going forward will be how effectively the company can convert the user data it has secured into actual financial revenue.