{{short description|Digital wallet service in South Korea}} {{Infobox software | name = Kakao Pay | logo = File:KakaoPay Logo.png | logo size = | screenshot = | screenshot size = | caption = | developer = Kakao | released = {{start date and age|2014|09|05}} | operating system = Android<br>iOS | platform = Android and iOS devices and WatchOS devices and Wear OS devices | license = Proprietary | website = {{URL|https://www.kakaopay.com}} }}
'''Kakao Pay'''<ref name="brand">https://www.kakaopay.com/brand</ref> ({{Korean|hangul=카카오페이}}<ref name="brand" />; stylized as kakao'''pay'''<ref>https://www.kakaopay.com/</ref>) is a mobile payment and digital wallet service by Kakao based in South Korea that allows users make mobile payments and online transactions.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.techforkorea.com/2017/06/27/kakaopay-launches-mobile-authentication-service-kakaopay-authentication/|title=Kakao Pay Launches Mobile Authentication Service, 'Kakao Pay Authentication' {{!}} Korean Startups News|last=TechForKorea|website=www.techforkorea.com|language=en-US|access-date=2018-02-12}}</ref> The service supports contactless payments using near-field communications and QR codes.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.zdnet.com/article/kakao-pay-adds-offline-qr-code-wire-transfers/|title=Kakao Pay adds offline QR code wire transfers|publisher=ZDNet|access-date=January 24, 2018}}</ref>
Kakao Pay is incorporated into KakaoTalk, the mobile instant messenger from Kakao.
==History== The payment service first launched on September 4, 2014, with integration with their messaging app, KakaoTalk, allowing people to request and send money to people in their contacts.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.techinasia.com/kakaotalk-kakaopay-mobile-epayments-korea|title=KakaoTalk goes into the mobile payment business with KakaoPay|publisher=Tech in Asia|access-date=January 24, 2018}}</ref> Since its launch, Kakao has expanded into other financial services by launching their own online bank called KakaoBank and releasing their own debit card.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20180105000244&ACE_SEARCH=1|title=Kakao Corp to launch debit cards to compete in offline payment market|publisher=The Korea Herald|access-date=January 24, 2018}}</ref> In April 2017, KakaoPay Co., Ltd. was established to run the payment services operated by the company.
KakaoPay crossed the 10 million user mark after 20 months since its launch.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.zdnet.com/article/kakao-pay-tops-10-million-users-in-south-korea/|title=Kakao Pay tops 10 million users in South Korea|publisher=ZDNet|access-date=January 24, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://globalpaymentsummit.com/kakaopay-10million-users-mobile-payment-south-korea/|title=KakaoPay – Reaching 10 Million Users In Mobile Payment (South Korea)|website=Global Payment Summit}}</ref> More features have been added to the service like the ability to send remittances, send invoices, and complete online transactions on mobile. With the rapid increase in users and payment transactions, KakaoPay received a $200M investment from Alibaba's Ant Financial, the parent company of Alipay, a mobile payment service in China.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2017/02/20/ant-financial-kakao-pay/|title=Alibaba's Ant Financial expands to Korea with $200M investment in Kakao Pay|publisher=Tech Crunch|access-date=January 24, 2018}}</ref>
Kakao Pay went public in November 2021.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-11-03 |title=Kakao Pay off to solid start on stock market debut - The Korea Times |url=https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/economy/20211103/kakao-pay-off-to-solid-start-on-stock-market-debut |access-date=2026-03-27 |website=www.koreatimes.co.kr |language=en}}</ref>
In April 2025, the Financial Supervisory Service fined Kakao Pay 15 billion won for giving shareholder Alipay Singapore Holdings 40 million users' data without their consent.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-04-09 |title=FSS fines Kakao Pay $10 mil. for illegally transferring customer data to Alipay - The Korea Times |url=https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/economy/20250409/fss-fines-kakao-pay-10-mil-for-illegally-transferring-customer-data-to-alipay |access-date=2026-03-27 |website=www.koreatimes.co.kr |language=en}}</ref>
==See also== * kakao page * NAVER Pay
==References== {{reflist}}
{{Kakao}} {{Digital payment providers}}
Category:Kakao Category:Mobile payments in South Korea Category:Companies in the KOSPI 200