KRAFTON achieves record-high sales of 1,910.6 billion KRW (£1,139M GBP) in 2023

Records Operating Profit at 768B KRW (£458M GBP) and Net Profit at 594.1B KRW (£354M GBP)

• Sales upturn mainly driven by the popularity of PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS on PC/Console and BATTLEGROUNDS MOBILE INDIA

Aims to release new titles such as Dark & Darker Mobile and inZOI each year, thereby pursuing step-by-step growth

KRAFTON Inc. (CEO CH Kim) announced its 2023 and 4Q23 preliminary earnings on 26 January and held an earnings call in the afternoon of 8 February.

On a consolidated basis, KRAFTON posted 2023 sales of 1,910.6B South Korean Won (£1,139M GBP), Operating Profit (OP) of 768B KRW (£458M GBP) and Net Profit (NP) of 594.1B KRW (£354M GBP) in accordance with the Korean International Financial Reporting Standards (K-IFRS). The company set record-high annual sales. Sales and OP climbed 3.1% YoY and 2.2% YoY, respectively, while NP rose 18.8% YoY. 4Q23 sales picked up 12.8% YoY to 534.6B KRW and OP firmed 30.3% YoY to 164.3B KRW.

Sales from PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS on PC and consoles increased 37% YoY, and the Peak Concurrent Users (PCU) also spiked by 70% in December 2023 compared to the year’s lowest point. After resuming its services last year, BATTLEGROUNDS MOBILE INDIA has quickly recovered both traffic and revenue, recording the largest monthly sales in December. KRAFTON analyzed that the result shows the robust growth prospects for the PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS IP and demonstrates the expandability of KRAFTON’s business and game portfolio in the Indian market. 

On Thursday’s conference call, the company also unveiled its new titles and mid to long-term direction. Starting 2024, KRAFTON plans to release new games every year in the coming years in line with its ‘Scale-up the Creative’ strategy. It introduced key lineup titles, including Dark and Darker Mobile, inZOI, Dinkum Mobile, Project Black Budget, and Subnautica 2. The company also announced that it has invested in more than ten projects as a second-party publisher. For the mid to long-term direction, KRAFTON announced it was franchising the PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS IP, expanding independent publishing and growth in the Indian market, and increasing R&D investments in Artificial Intelligence, specifically Deep Learning. 

CEO Kim concluded, “Having achieved stable performance last year, mainly through the PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS IP, we were able to focus on securing multiple upcoming titles. We are now prepared to take a leap forward.” He added, “this year will mark the beginning of reaping the rewards from these efforts, reaching a pivotal milestone for KRAFTON’s step-by-step growth.” 

▲Table: KRAFTON’s 4Q23 (preliminary) earnings on a consolidated basis (unit: KRW100M)

▲Table: KRAFTON’s 2023 (preliminary) earnings on a consolidated basis (unit: KRW100M)