Korean internet company Kakao acquires 50% shares of Japan’s Sakura exchange

The Japan-based digital comics subscription platform and a subsidiary of the Korean internet firm Kakao has acquired a 50% controlling stake in the Japanese crypto exchange platform, Sakura Exchange Bitcoin (SEBC), becoming the biggest shareholder of the company.

As per the local reports, the agreement, which was closed recently, aims to help Kakao offer crypto services on its Piccoma webtoon platform and expand its roots into the Web3 space.

Piccoma is Japan’s largest webtoon platform. After six years on the Japanese market, its application generated $1 billion in consumer spending in 2021.

The sum Kakao paid for its exchange stake has not been revealed. SEBC is one of only 30 crypto-asset exchanges licensed by the Financial Services Agency (FSA) in Japan, and it supports 11 crypto tokens, including Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), and Ripple (XRP).

Kim Beom-soo, better known as Brian Kim, the founder of Kakao, stepped aside from the board of directors in mid-March to focus on the company’s affiliate brands, particularly the Piccoma brand in Japan. The buyout of SEBC is the company’s first merger and acquisition activity after Kim decided to step down.

Notably, in January, investing platform Amber Group hinted at its plans to acquire Japanese crypto exchange DeCurret.

Kakao’s involvement in the crypto industry

Kakao has already expressed interest in the crypto industry. It launched two blockchain companies in Singapore in August of last year: the Klaytn Foundation, a nonprofit, and Krust, an accelerator for blockchain technology adoption around the globe.

Ground X, a Kakao blockchain subsidiary, won a central bank digital currency tender from the Bank of Korea in July 2021, making it the leading technology provider for blockchain-based digital won simulations.

Prior to that, the company was an early investor in the Upbit crypto exchange, which saw a major hack in 2019 and was the first to register with South Korea’s financial regulators.