South Korean operator KT named a new CEO following a six-month vacancy and recorded gains across all business units in Q2, with mobile ARPU increasing for the fourth consecutive quarter.

The board appointed Kim Young-Shub, former head of LG subsidiary LG CNS, as CEO. The appointment requires shareholder approval at an EGM later in the month.

In a statement, chair Yoon Jong-Soo, explained that, “based on his corporate management and ICT expertise, Kim has presented a clear vision for KT to grow as a global digital platform company in a rapidly changing environment”.

“We believe he is the best candidate to lay the foundation for sustainable growth under KT’s new management vision, lead innovation among employees, and build collaborative relationships with internal and external stakeholders.”

Figures
Net profit grew 19 per cent year-on-year KRW532.5 billion ($404.1 million), on the back of cost-efficient gains driven by improvements in business implementation, CFO Kim Young-jin said on an earnings call.

He noted despite economic headwinds including inflationary pressures, KT’s B2C and B2B businesses “have all shown robust growth supported by its fundamentals”.

Revenue rose 3.7 per cent to KRW6.5 trillion.

Wireless revenue was flat at KRW1.6 trillion, aided by higher domestic roaming revenue.

Mobile ARPU increased 4.6 per cent to KRW33,948.

The operator’s 5G subscriber base grew 24.1 per cent to 9.3 million, but total subscribers fell by nearly 310,000 to 13.6 million, though MVNO customers expanded 16.8 per cent to 7 million.

Handset revenue declined 9.8 per cent to KRW578.9 billion.

Broadband sales rose 2.7 per cent to KRW612.4 billion and fixed telephony fell 4.2 per cent to KRW215.8 billion

Its media and mobile platform businesses registered 3.8 per cent growth to KRW575.6 billion, while its telco B2B unit increased 7.6 per cent to KRW546.9 billion.

Enterprise revenue was flat at KRW505.9 billion.

Capex reached KRW1.4 trillion: the outlay for 2022 was KRW3.5 trillion.