Netmarble

Netmarble originated from the game developer Ipopsoft (아이팝소프트), which faced financial trouble in the late 1990s. In 1999, Bang Jun-hyuk was appointed an outside director, and took over the company the next year when it went into financial issues.^[4] Bang became the CEO, and the company was rebranded as Netmarble.^[5][6] At launch, Netmarble had 8 employees with a founding capital of ₩100,000,000.^[4]

After early success, Netmarble was acquired by CJ Group in 2004.^[7][8] Bang stepped down in 2006 due to health issues but returned in 2011 to refocus the company on mobile games.^[8]

In 2015, Netmarble developed Lineage 2: Revolution, which surpassed $924 million in revenue within 11 months of launch. The company continued releasing RPG mobile titles like Seven Knights, Raven (Evilbane), and Everybody's Marble. As of 2015, it employed over 3,000 people and operated in 120+ countries. Netmarble went public in May 2017, raising $2.4 billion.^[3]

Netmarble also formed a strategic partnership with CJ ENM and invested in SGN.^[9]

Between 2015 and 2017, Netmarble licensed Disney IPs, producing games such as Marvel: Future Fight (2015),^[10] Disney Magical Dice (2016),^[11] and Star Wars: Force Arena (2017).^[12]

In 2017, Netmarble acquired Kabam's Vancouver studio.^[13] In 2018, it appointed Park Sean as co-CEO alongside Kwon Young-sik.^[1]

That year, Netmarble acquired a 25.71% stake in Big Hit Entertainment (now Hybe Corporation), becoming its second-largest shareholder.^[14][15]

Netmarble later shut down both Disney Magical Dice and Star Wars: Force Arena, citing lack of support, leaving only Future Fight active.^{[citation needed]}

In December 2019, Netmarble acquired a 25.08% controlling stake in the home appliance rental company Coway from the Woongjin Group for approximately 1.74 trillion won ($1.46 billion). The acquisition was officially completed on February 11, 2020.^[16]

In 2021, Netmarble acquired Kung Fu Factory^[17] and launched the subsidiary Metaverse Entertainment with Kakao Entertainment.^[18] It debuted the virtual girl group Mave: in 2023.^[19]

Marvel Future Revolution launched in August 2021 but was shut down in August 2023 due to underperformance.^[20] In January 2024, Netmarble shut down Metaverse Entertainment and laid off 70 employees.^[21]

As of 2021, Netmarble's major shareholders included Bang Jun-hyuk (24.12%), CJ ENM (21.78%), Tencent via Han River Investment Pte. Ltd. (17.52%), NCsoft (6.8%), and others (29.78%).^[22]

In July 2025, Netmarble's liquidity was significantly strengthened by its investment in HYBE shares. Despite selling approximately ₩743 billion worth of stock in 2023 and 2024, it retained a 9.44% stake (393,813 shares) valued at around ₩11.07 trillion. Its original 2018 investment of ₩201.4 billion in HYBE had appreciated considerably. Additionally, its stake in NCsoft rebounded from a ₩1.5 trillion write-down to an estimated ₩400 billion in value.^[23]

Also in July 2025, Netmarble considered issuing ₩2.5 trillion in exchangeable bonds (EB), backed by part of its HYBE stake, to repay debt incurred from its ₩2 trillion acquisition of SpinX. NH Investment & Securities was expected to underwrite the deal, supported by NH Hedge Asset Management and institutional investors. The company had previously used HYBE shares as collateral, including a 2023 block trade and a 2024 price return swap.^[24]

However, in August 2025, Netmarble canceled the EB issuance due to volatility in HYBE's stock price following an "owner risk" scandal involving HYBE founder Bang Si-hyuk. The bond proceeds were intended to reduce SpinX-related debt, which has since been cut from approximately ₩1.6 trillion to the mid-₩200 billion range.^[25]

In April 2026, Netmarble announced to invest additional 150 billion won to increase its equity stake in Coway from 26.13% to 29.1%. This strategic move is primarily designed to block activist fund Align Partners from challenging its board representation and altering corporate governance. Additionally, tightening its grip secures a highly profitable subscription "cash cow" that provides stable dividend income to hedge against Netmarble's volatile gaming business.^[26]

In August 2026, Netmarble Chairman Bang junhyuk acquired additional 13.4% stake in the company from Tencent for approximately 374 billion KRW using personally secured funds, which increases his total shareholding from 24.93% to 38.34%. According to the company, the transaction was designed to reinforce responsible management by the largest stakeholder and mitigate market uncertainties regarding potential large scale share liquidations. Both companies confirmed that their strategic partnership across global gaming and other business area will remain unaffected^[27].

1. ^ a b "Netmarble names Park Sean as new CEO". Yonhap News. February 26, 2018.
2. ^ a b "넷마블게임즈 주식회사 감사보고서" (in Korean). Dart. March 17, 2017. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
3. ^ a b "Profile: Bang Jun-hyuk". Forbes. February 28, 2019.
4. ^ a b Heo, Jaegyeong (February 7, 2018). "고교 중퇴 '진품 흙수저'에서 게임업계 '잡스'로… 방준혁 넷마블 의장은 누구?-경제ㅣ한국일보". Hankook Ilbo (in Korean). Retrieved June 30, 2026.
5. ^ "흙수저 딛고 1조신화…방준혁을 만든 'Do Dream'". 매일경제 (in Korean). March 2, 2018. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
6. ^ 임재후 (January 22, 2020). "[Who Is ?] 방준혁 넷마블 이사회 의장". businesspost.co.kr (in Korean). Retrieved January 3, 2025.
7. ^ Jin-young, Cho (June 7, 2018). "The Invincible Bang Brothers: Game and Entertainment Moguls Join hands". Businesskorea (in Korean). Retrieved January 3, 2025.
8. ^ a b Chung, Grace. "High School Dropout To Billionaire Status: How One Man Built Korea's Biggest Mobile Gaming Company". Forbes. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
9. ^ "넷마블 분기보고서" (in Korean). Dart. September 30, 2018.
10. ^ "Marvel: Future Fight launches from Netmarble". Marvel Entertainment. April 30, 2015. Archived from the original on December 26, 2017. Retrieved July 26, 2017 – via Marvel.com.
11. ^ Jones, Elton (April 28, 2016). "Disney Magical Dice: Top 10 Tips & Cheats You Need to Know". Heavy.com. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
12. ^ Minotti, Mike (November 17, 2016). "Star Wars: Force Arena for mobile sure looks like a MOBA". GamesBeat. Retrieved September 14, 2026.
13. ^ "Netmarble buys Kabam's Vancouver studio". gamesindustry.biz. December 20, 2016.
14. ^ Herman, Tamar. "Netmarble Games Becomes Second-Largest Shareholder Of BTS's Label, BigHit Entertainment". Forbes.
15. ^ "HYBE Corporate Governance". hybecorp.com. Retrieved August 13, 2021.
16. ^ "Woongjin Group's Sale of Equity Interest in Woongjin Coway to Netmarble - Kim & Chang". www.kimchang.com (in Korean). Retrieved June 29, 2026.
17. ^ Sinclair, Brendan (February 19, 2021). "Netmarble acquires Kung Fu Factory". GamesIndustry.biz. Retrieved May 19, 2023.
18. ^ "메타버스엔터테인먼트, 공식 회사 홈페이지 오픈". Ch netmarble. November 8, 2022. Retrieved February 12, 2023.
19. ^ Jang, Woo-young (January 11, 2023). "메이브, 4인조 완전체 비주얼 첫 공개…러블리→힙 '4色 매력'". Retrieved February 12, 2023.
20. ^ Derrick, Connor (June 5, 2023). "Marvel Future Revolution announces it will end service and leave storefronts in the coming months". Retrieved March 5, 2024.
21. ^ 김, 주환 (January 19, 2024). "기세 꺾인 메타버스…넷마블F&C, 메타버스월드 전원 권고사직". Retrieved March 5, 2024.
22. ^ "Netmarble Corporate Governance". Netmarble. August 13, 2021.
23. ^ "유동성 풍향계 넷마블, 은혜갚은 하이브 주식 '1조' 유동성 버팀목". thebell. July 16, 2025.
24. ^ "'하이브 지분 활용' 넷마블, 2500억 EB 발행 추진". thebell. July 11, 2025.
25. ^ "'하이브 주가 급락' 넷마블, 2500억 EB 발행 계획 철회". thebell. August 20, 2025.
26. ^ CHOSUNBIZ (April 6, 2026). "Netmarble boosts Coway stake with 150 billion won share buy in South Korea". CHOSUNBIZ. Retrieved June 29, 2026.
27. ^ Hyeong-woo, Kan (August 23, 2026). "Netmarble chief to buy W374b Tencent stake to tighten control". The Korea Herald. Retrieved September 18, 2026.
28. ^ "TOMAK: Save the Earth Regeneration | Télécharger et acheter aujourd'hui - Epic Games Store". Epic Games Store (in French). April 2, 2026. Retrieved April 11, 2026.
29. ^ 이, 복현 (June 14, 2018). "넷마블, 사전등록 130만 돌파한 나이츠크로니클 출시". NSP통신 (in Korean). Retrieved December 21, 2024.
30. ^ "경영 효율화 ·신작 줄대기...넷마블, 연간 흑자전환 총력전". 디지털투데이 (DigitalToday) (in Korean). February 27, 2024. Retrieved December 21, 2024.
31. ^ Lee, Hyeongcheol (October 7, 2020). "'세븐나이츠2' 11월 출시! 실사 그래픽에 전략적 전투 담았다". ThisIsGame. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
32. ^ "Netmarble's Dark Fantasy MMORPG Raven2 Officially Launches Worldwide on Mobile and PC". Inven Global. October 2025. Retrieved August 4, 2026.
33. ^ "Netmarble: A New Game of Thrones Mobile MMORPG". BlueStacks. February 2, 2022. Retrieved June 13, 2022.
34. ^ Reyes, Allisandra (September 17, 2026). "Pearl in Blue is a Romantic Comedy Mobile Game Where Heroines Become Knights". Game 8. Retrieved September 25, 2026.

• Official website
• Business data for Netmarble: Google; Reuters; Yahoo!