Nam Goong-hun Purchases 1% Stake in Kakao Games... "Gaming Industry Will Grow Again"
Nam Goong-hun, CEO of Eyes Entertainment and former CEO of Kakao, announced on the 24th that he has purchased a 1% stake in Kakao Games through in-market trading. This marks the third gaming stock purchase following Joy City and Wemade Play (acquired on the 11th), which he had previously disclosed.
On his Facebook, Nam said, "Following my previous in-market purchase of a 1% stake in Wemade Play, I have additionally acquired a 1% stake in Kakao Games."
As of 9:16 a.m. on the 24th, Kakao Games' stock price was trading at 8,570 won, up 0.7% from the previous trading day. Based on a market capitalization of approximately 914.8 billion won, the value of a 1% stake is estimated at around 9.1 billion won. Nam did not disclose the specific timing or unit price of the purchase.
He said, "The stock market currently appears to view the gaming industry as moving beyond maturity into decline." However, he added, "I believe the gaming industry will grow again in two directions." He elaborated: "One direction is hardcore growth where advanced technology blurs the boundaries between reality and virtual worlds, and the other is infinitely casual growth through AI technology that allows anyone to easily enjoy and create games themselves."
Regarding Kakao Games, he stated, "With Kakao's sale, the company has a unique structure with LINE as the largest shareholder and Kakao and Tencent still as major shareholders." He assessed that "it will face a timely opportunity for renewed growth through these distinctive advantages."
Kakao sold part of its Kakao Games stake to LINE Yahoo in March, dropping from largest to second-largest shareholder, and completed the management rights transfer in May.
Nam previously served as CEO of Kakao Games and CEO of Kakao, and currently leads AI-based startup Eyes Entertainment. At the time of his Wemade Play stake purchase, he said, "The KOSDAQ market has been excessively neglected recently, and gaming stocks in particular have been receiving even greater neglect."