South Korea's Kakao founder quits board to focus on units' global expansion

The Kakao messaging application and the Kakao T taxi booking application are seen on a mobile phone in this illustration photo March 13, 2018. REUTERS/Thomas White/Illustration/Files

SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korean billionaire Brian Kim, founder of the country's leading chat app operator Kakao Corp, stepped down from its board to focus on global expansion of its affiliates' businesses, the company said on Monday.

Kim will focus on Kakao-backed Piccoma in Japan, one of the country's top comics apps, as a base to seek more business opportunities and expand Kakao's reach, the app operator said in a statement.