This article was displayed on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove (MM) site at 3:16 p.m. on May 15, 2026.
Texas Pacific Group (TPG), the global private equity firm that is a key financial investor (FI) in Kakao Mobility, has put a range of options on the table to recoup its investment. With not only the sale of management control—discussed with VIG Partners last year but called off—back in play, but also the possibility of a U.S. listing being raised, talks on an FI exit from Kakao Mobility appear to be resurfacing.
According to the investment banking (IB) industry on the 15th, Kakao Mobility recently formed an internal review team for an initial public offering (IPO) and is looking into the possibility of a U.S. listing. It is also reportedly reviewing listing depository receipts (ADR) on the Nasdaq market. However, Kakao said these are all cards to broaden FIs' exit options at this stage.
The exit work for Kakao Mobility is said to be led by Yoon Sin-won, TPG deputy representative. TPG is the second-largest shareholder with 29% equity in Kakao Mobility. In addition, Carlyle holds 6.2%, and a consortium of Korea Investment & Securities Co. and Orix PE holds 5.4%, respectively. Kakao is the largest shareholder with 57.5% equity, but it is said to be stepping back and not taking a leading role in the current exit talks.
A Nasdaq listing for Kakao Mobility is expected to take quite a long time to prepare. A U.S. listing requires comprehensive preparations across accounting, legal, IR, internal controls, and English-language disclosure systems. A source in the IB industry said, "Even if preparations start now, a Nasdaq listing could take three to four years," adding, "With the current workforce and organization, it will not be easy to push ahead in a short period."
Some say Kakao Mobility is also reviewing listing American depositary receipts (ADR) on the U.S. Nasdaq. ADRs allow U.S. investors to trade by having a U.S. depository institution issue depository receipts based on shares of overseas corporations while the shares remain with the home office. Unlike a "flip" structure, which involves setting up a U.S. holding company and having existing shareholders transfer their shares, the domestic corporate structure can be maintained, making the governance overhaul burden relatively lower.
However, ADRs do not mean the listing preparations are simple. To list on Nasdaq, it is not enough to merely issue depository receipts; registration with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Nasdaq's listing review are required. When Korean corporations list on a U.S. exchange, they must establish a disclosure system through the SEC's regular filings (Form 20-F), audited financial statements, risk factors, and disclosures on major shareholders and governance, and they must submit Form 20-F annually after listing.
The fact that Kakao Mobility is an unlisted domestic company is also a variable. If it were a listed company, there would already be shares traded on the market that could be deposited to structure ADRs, but Kakao Mobility has no shares traded on the public market. Therefore, it must newly create the supply that U.S. investors can trade and agree on how to set its price. It must also confirm through shareholder agreements whether existing shareholders can use their equity for ADR issuance. Because of this, while ADRs impose a lower governance-restructuring burden than a flip, some say actual execution requires preparations comparable to a U.S. IPO.
From the standpoint of TPG, the second-largest shareholder of Kakao Mobility, it has no choice but to keep both sale and listing cards open. TPG has sought an exit opportunity for a long time after investing in Kakao Mobility. Uber, which has aimed to expand through M&A due to its low market share in Korea, showed interest in acquiring Kakao Mobility, and there was talk that TPG would acquire Lotte Rental to scale up and then move in earnest to sell, but nothing has progressed yet on the M&A front.