The prosecutor's office, which is investigating the 'revenue inflation allegations' against Kakao Mobility, is conducting a search and seizure at the Kakao Mobility office on the 20th.
The Financial Investigation Division 2 of the Southern District Prosecutors' Office (Director General Kim Soo-hong) is conducting a search and seizure of the Kakao Mobility office located in Bundang-gu, Seongnam City, and the residences of executives and employees starting at 10 a.m. today.
Previously, the Securities and Futures Commission under the Financial Services Commission reported that there was accounting fraud related to the revenue inflation allegations against Kakao Mobility and imposed a penalty surcharge of 4.1 billion won, in addition to deciding to forward the business information to the prosecutor's office.
Kakao Mobility applied the aggregate method, recognizing all 20% of the commission received from franchise taxi operators as revenue from 2020 to 2022. However, the Financial Supervisory Service determined that it violated accounting standards, stating that it should apply the net method, recognizing only the remaining 3% as revenue after excluding the 17% returned to franchise taxi operators under the guise of advertising costs. The Securities and Futures Commission also concluded that recognizing the entire 20% franchise commission as revenue constitutes a significant violation of accounting processing standards.
The prosecutor's office is also investigating Kakao Mobility for allegations of 'call blocking' and 'call favoritism.'