Kakao Bank eyes AI, overseas growth after best-ever quarter

Kakao Bank's logo (Kakao Bank)

Kakao Bank, South Korea’s largest internet-only lender, posted record earnings in the first quarter, fueled by a diversified portfolio and strong growth in non-interest income. The company aims to build on that momentum with the rollout of artificial intelligence services later this month.

Operating profit and net income came in at 183 billion won ($134 million) and 137.4 billion won, respectively, in the January–March quarter — both up 23 percent from a year earlier and marking record highs for the bank.

“We have maintained balanced growth across all business segments and strengthened our growth engines by diversifying our portfolio, building on overwhelming customer traffic,” the company said in a statement.

Non-interest income surged 33 percent on-year to 281.8 billion won, accounting for 36 percent of total operating revenue.

The increase reflects gains in both fee and platform businesses, as well as improved returns from financial investments, the firm explained. Fee and platform revenue climbed 8.8 percent to 77.6 billion won, while income from investment assets reached 164.8 billion won.

The lender’s customer base expanded to 25.45 million as of end-March, with monthly active users rising to 18.92 million. Total deposits rose to 60.4 trillion won, while outstanding loans reached 44.3 trillion won.

Kakao Bank said future growth will be driven by AI and overseas expansion, as it seeks to evolve into a full-service financial platform. Beginning later this month, it will gradually roll out AI-powered services, starting with “AI Search,” which answers customer questions in real time, followed by an “AI Financial Calculator” that enables interactive financial calculations.

Its global push is also gaining traction. Superbank, an Indonesian digital lender backed by Kakao Bank and Southeast Asian mobility giant Grab, turned a profit just one year after its official launch in June. Kakao Bank is also on track to become the first Korean bank in 27 years to establish operations in Thailand, pending approval of a digital banking license expected next month. If granted, it will partner with Thai financial group SCBX to begin operations in 2026.