Koreas’ Kakao Corp. has enhanced mobile booking service on its chat platform by earning ownership in TideSquare Co., a ticketing service partner of Hyundai Card Co., through an equity investment.

According to investment bank industry sources and regulatory filing on Tuesday, Kakao, operator of the country’s top mobile messenger app, recently acquired a 28.9 percent stake in TideSquare for 34.7 billion won ($30.7 million). Following the acquisition, it incorporated the travel agency as a subsidiary, citing the option to gain additional voting rights.

A Kakao official said the company made the investment to offer broader services at its mobile messenger platform.

TideSquare, established in 2009, has been a travel service partner of Hyundai Card, the country’s No. 3 credit card issuer, since 2010. The company has reported solid performance with operating profit reaching 4.8 billion won on revenue of 37.9 billion won in 2017.

Kakao first entered a partnership with TideSquare last year for its newly launched air ticket service. With the stake acquisition, the messenger operator is expected to further enhance its travel business.

Kakao has been on an aggressive M&A campaign in recent years to add value to its chat platform business. So far, it has launched mobile-only banking and mobile payment services, and entertainment on top of many others. It also owns a game developing unit Kakao Games and has joined the race to bid after a majority stake in Korea’s top game publisher Nexon.

By Jin Young-tae and Cho Jeehyun

[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]