Coronavirus social distancing adds US$1.2 billion into Kakao founder Brian Kim’s fortune

The abrupt halt in person-to-person interactions caused by the pandemic has triggered a surge in communication on KakaoTalk

The mobile messenger app has become almost ubiquitous in South Korea, with more than 45 million users

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Published: 2:18pm, 22 May 2020Updated: 9:39pm, 22 May 2020

As a kid in South Korea, Brian Kim grew up with the opposite of social distancing: Coming from a humble background, he had to share a room with seven family members. Those days are gone, and measures keeping people apart are now helping his fortune.

Kim, 54, is the founder of Kakao Corp., the maker of a mobile messenger app that has become almost ubiquitous in South Korea and increasingly used elsewhere in Asia.

The firm, which started with a social-messaging app, has expanded its businesses over the past decade by purchasing a K-pop entertainment company and merging with the country’s second-largest portal site, while its mobile-hailing and payment services are now daily necessities for many consumers.

Kakao’s shares have surged 55 per cent this year through Thursday, adding US$1.2 billion to Kim’s net worth, which now stands at US$3.7 billion.

Hwang Seung-taek, an analyst at Hana Financial Investment Co., attributes the surge in communication on Kakao to the abrupt halt in person-to-person interactions caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

While South Korea managed to control infections without imposing a lockdown or banning international travel, the government closed public places such as parks and libraries and encouraged people to stay home. Many companies asked their employees not to come to the office.