Kakao Pay walks away from SSG Pay acquisition talks

SSG Pay logo (SSG.com)

Shinsegae Group has failed to sell its mobile payment businesses after Kakao Pay withdrew from acquisition talks, the retail giant confirmed Thursday.

“We had been in discussions with Kakao Pay over a strategic partnership in the mobile payment business, but decided to end the talks due to shifts in the strategic direction of both companies,” Shinsegae Group said in a statement.

The two companies had been in negotiations since early this year over the sale of SSG Pay and Smile Pay, with the deal valued at around 400 billion won ($290 million) at the time, according to industry sources. Kakao Pay reportedly offered a lower price in the talks.

With Kakay Pay emerging as a likely buyer, Shinsegae moved to facilitate the sale by spinning off the mobile payment division of its e-commerce platform, SSG.com, to create a new entity called Platinum Payment earlier this month.

Kakao Pay had actively pursued the acquisition to close the gap with market leader Naver Pay and strengthen its position. The company reached a tentative agreement with Shinsegae on key terms, including pricing and personnel matters, but the deal was ultimately called off upon Kakao‘s call to reassess the plan, according to industry sources.

“We will strengthen the expertise of our mobile payment business, ensure stable service operations and pursue independent growth,” Shinsegae said, adding that it aims to boost competitiveness across both its retail and payment divisions.

This marks the second failed attempt by Shinsegae to sell its payment platform, following a collapsed deal with Toss in 2023. At that time, the conglomerate sought to sell SSG Pay for about 700 billion won.