Kakao restructures decision-making committee in wake of controversy over outsize influence

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Kakao restructures decision-making committee in wake of controversy over outsize influence

Published: 23 Jan. 2026, 18:13 Updated: 25 Jan. 2026, 16:22

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Chung Shin-a, right, CEO of Kakao, talks with new employees during an event held at the Kakao AI Campus on Jan. 7. [KAKAO]

Kakao will restructure its top decision-making body, the CA Council, in the wake of controversy over the panel's outsize influence within the group.

The company said Friday it will replace four committees, two divisions and one support unit with three offices and four executive leads. The new structure takes effect Feb. 1, and the council’s headcount will be cut from about 150 to roughly half.

Under Corporate Alignment (CA) Council chair Chung Shin-a, Kakao will set up the Group Investment Strategy Office, Group Financial Strategy Office and Group Human Resources Strategy Office.

Kim Do-young, CEO of Kakao Investment, will lead the investment strategy office, while Shin Jong-whan, Kakao's chief financial officer, will head the financial strategy office. Hwang Tae-sun, who has overseen the council’s secretariat, will shift to lead the human resources strategy office.

Government relations, public relations, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) strategy and compliance functions previously handled by the committees will be assigned to four executives. Government relations will be led by Lee Yeon-jae, head of the Corporate Relations Support Unit, while public relations will be led by Lee Na-ri, chair of the Brand Communication committee.

Kakao CEO Chung Shin-a [KAKAO]

ESG will be overseen by Kwon Dae-yeol, chair of the ESG committee, and compliance will be handled by Jeong Jong-wook, chair of the Responsible Management committee.

A Kakao representative said the company expects decision-making within the Kakao Group to be streamlined by introducing the executive-in-charge posts. The company also plans to significantly cut the CA Council’s headcount, reducing it to roughly half from about 150.

The CA Council was created in 2024 to coordinate competing interests among affiliates and serve as a group command center after a string of controversies in which executives at listed affiliates such as Kakao Pay and Kakao Bank sold shares when prices were near their peaks.

Kakao founder Kim Beom-su and CEO Chung served as co-chairs to accelerate reforms. Over the two years since its launch, Kakao has cut the number of affiliates by 33 percent and increased executives’ purchases of company shares.

Kim Beom-su, founder of tech giant Kakao, speaks at a company training session for new employees at the company's AI Campus in Yongin, Gyeonggi, on Jan. 15. [KAKAO]

But after Kim — who also served as head of the council’s management reform committee — stepped back from management due to health issues in March of last year, critics say the reform drive lost momentum. Instead, they argue, too much authority became concentrated in the CA Council, adding another layer to decision-making.

Some senior council executives were also accused of acting as “gatekeepers,” exerting outsized influence over affiliate CEO appointments and management.

Inside Kakao, some say the latest overhaul focuses on downsizing but falls short of meaningful personnel changes.

“To see real reform, you need to start by changing the executives, but this is another revolving-door reshuffle — titles change, people don’t,” an industry source said. “Even after the restructuring, the same ‘tower above a tower’ problem will persist.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY OH HYEON-WOO [[email protected]]