WEBTOON Entertainment Inc. Reports Fourth Quarter And Full Year 2025 Financial Results
| Financial Statements WEBTOON Entertainment Inc. Consolidated Balance Sheets (Unaudited) (in thousands of USD, except share and per share data) | |||||||
| As of December 31, | |||||||
| 2025 | 2024 | ||||||
| Assets | |||||||
| Current assets: | |||||||
| Cash and cash equivalents | $ | 581,806 | $ | 572,402 | |||
| Receivables1, net of allowance for credit losses of $3,378 and $3,418 at December 31, 2025, and December 31, 2024, respectively | 176,779 | 169,187 | |||||
| Prepaid expenses and other current assets, net2 | 72,647 | 94,783 | |||||
| Total current assets | 831,232 | 836,372 | |||||
| Property and equipment, net | 8,339 | 3,782 | |||||
| Operating lease right-of-use assets | 23,705 | 16,649 | |||||
| Debt and equity securities | 69,669 | 70,178 | |||||
| Intangible assets, net | 157,804 | 180,912 | |||||
| Goodwill, net | 336,825 | 665,275 | |||||
| Equity method investments | 80,440 | 78,668 | |||||
| Deferred tax assets | 22,302 | 17,592 | |||||
| Other non-current assets, net3 | 65,194 | 65,906 | |||||
| Total assets | $ | 1,595,510 | $ | 1,935,334 | |||
| Liabilities and equity | |||||||
| Current liabilities: | |||||||
| Accounts payable4 | $ | 136,962 | $ | 127,306 | |||
| Accrued expenses5 | 66,690 | 62,209 | |||||
| Current portion of operating lease liabilities6 | 9,617 | 6,053 | |||||
| Contract liabilities | 89,994 | 85,860 | |||||
| Income tax payables – corporate tax | 1,236 | 10,093 | |||||
| Consumption taxes payables | 2,900 | 8,339 | |||||
| Provisions and defined pension benefits | 8,766 | 11,133 | |||||
| Other current liabilities | 2,457 | 2,231 | |||||
| Total current liabilities | 318,622 | 313,224 | |||||
| Non-current liabilities: | |||||||
| Long-term operating lease liabilities7 | 14,055 | 11,187 | |||||
| Defined severance benefits | 25,069 | 22,030 | |||||
| Deferred tax liabilities | 5,755 | 30,271 | |||||
| Other non-current liabilities | 3,737 | 2,161 | |||||
| Total liabilities | $ | 367,238 | $ | 378,873 | |||
| Commitments and Contingencies | |||||||
| Redeemable non-controlling interest in subsidiary | 24,540 | 36,580 | |||||
| Stockholders' equity: | |||||||
| Preferred stock, $0.0001 par value 100,000,000 authorized and no shares issued and outstanding as of December 31, 2025 and December 31, 2024, respectively | $ | - | $ | - | |||
| Common stock, $0.0001 par value 2,000,000,000 authorized, 130,776,161 shares and 128,587,944 shares issued and outstanding as of December 31, 2025, and December 31, 2024, respectively | $ | 13 | $ | 13 | |||
| Additional paid-in capital | 2,137,926 | 2,103,931 | |||||
| Accumulated other comprehensive loss | (114,363 | ) | (124,620 | ) | |||
| Accumulated deficit | (853,124 | ) | (507,197 | ) | |||
| Total stockholders' equity attributable to WEBTOON Entertainment Inc. | 1,170,452 | 1,472,127 | |||||
| Non-controlling interests in consolidated subsidiaries | 33,280 | 47,754 | |||||
| Total equity | 1,203,732 | 1,519,881 | |||||
| Total liabilities, redeemable non-controlling interest, and equity | $ | 1,595,510 | $ | 1,935,334 |
______________
1.Includes amounts due from related parties of $55,156 and $59,495 as of December 31, 2025, and December 31, 2024, respectively.
2.Includes amounts due from related parties of $4,730 and $9,258 as of December 31, 2025, and December 31, 2024, respectively.
3.Includes amounts due from related parties of $33,913 and $32,072 as of December 31, 2025, and December 31, 2024, respectively.
4.Includes amounts due to related parties of $18,765 and $17,173 as of December 31, 2025, and December 31, 2024, respectively.
5.Includes amounts due to related parties of $6,849 and $5,562 as of December 31, 2025, and December 31, 2024, respectively.
6.Includes amounts due to related parties of $5,221 and $3,506 as of December 31, 2025, and December 31, 2024, respectively.
7.Includes amounts due to related parties of $5,371 and $9,519 as of December 31, 2025, and December 31, 2024, respectively.
| WEBTOON Entertainment Inc. Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Loss (Unaudited) (in thousands of USD, except share and per share data) | ||||||||||||||||
| Three Months Ended December 31, | Year Ended December 31, | |||||||||||||||
| 2025 | 2024 | 2025 | 2024 | |||||||||||||
| Revenue1 | $ | 330,686 | $ | 352,847 | $ | 1,382,705 | $ | 1,348,478 | ||||||||
| Cost of revenue2 | (250,169 | ) | (270,576 | ) | (1,060,524 | ) | (1,009,410 | ) | ||||||||
| Marketing3 | (28,370 | ) | (32,138 | ) | (126,149 | ) | (107,783 | ) | ||||||||
| General and administrative expenses4 | (65,383 | ) | (77,839 | ) | (259,543 | ) | (331,984 | ) | ||||||||
| Operating Loss | (13,236 | ) | (27,706 | ) | (63,511 | ) | (100,699 | ) | ||||||||
| Interest income | 4,509 | 6,030 | 19,170 | 15,820 | ||||||||||||
| Interest expense | (50 | ) | (1 | ) | (56 | ) | (45 | ) | ||||||||
| Impairment losses on goodwill and other intangible assets, net | (336,486 | ) | (69,743 | ) | (336,486 | ) | (69,743 | ) | ||||||||
| Gain (loss) on equity method investments, net | (365 | ) | (53 | ) | 1,282 | (1,123 | ) | |||||||||
| Other income (loss), net5 | (9,220 | ) | (6,162 | ) | (9,808 | ) | 6,482 | |||||||||
| Loss before income tax | $ | (354,848 | ) | $ | (97,635 | ) | $ | (389,409 | ) | $ | (149,308 | ) | ||||
| Income tax benefit (expense) | 18,363 | (4,928 | ) | 16,022 | (3,604 | ) | ||||||||||
| Net loss | $ | (336,485 | ) | $ | (102,563 | ) | $ | (373,387 | ) | $ | (152,912 | ) | ||||
| Net income (loss) attributable to WEBTOON Entertainment Inc. | (307,565 | ) | (92,965 | ) | (345,927 | ) | (143,905 | ) | ||||||||
| Net income (loss) attributable to non-controlling interests and redeemable non-controlling interests | (28,920 | ) | (9,598 | ) | (27,460 | ) | (9,007 | ) | ||||||||
| Other comprehensive income (loss): | - | |||||||||||||||
| Foreign currency translation adjustments, net of tax | (16,784 | ) | (62,330 | ) | 9,792 | (71,935 | ) | |||||||||
| Share of other comprehensive income (loss) of equity method investments, net of tax | $ | 197 | $ | 55 | 896 | (94 | ) | |||||||||
| Total other comprehensive loss, net of tax | (16,587 | ) | (62,275 | ) | 10,688 | (72,029 | ) | |||||||||
| Total comprehensive loss | $ | (353,072 | ) | $ | (164,838 | ) | $ | (362,699 | ) | $ | (224,941 | ) | ||||
| Total comprehensive loss attributable to WEBTOON Entertainment Inc. | $ | (323,680 | ) | $ | (153,010 | ) | (335,669 | ) | (213,704 | ) | ||||||
| Total comprehensive loss attributable to non-controlling interests and redeemable non-controlling interests | (29,392 | ) | (11,828 | ) | (27,030 | ) | (11,237 | ) | ||||||||
| Weighted average shares outstanding | ||||||||||||||||
| Basic | 130,560,064 | 128,787,043 | 130,177,475 | 119,231,997 | ||||||||||||
| Diluted | 130,560,064 | 128,787,043 | 130,177,475 | 119,231,997 | ||||||||||||
| Income (loss) per share attributable to WEBTOON Entertainment Inc. | ||||||||||||||||
| Basic | $ | (2.36 | ) | $ | (0.72 | ) | $ | (2.66 | ) | $ | (1.21 | ) | ||||
| Diluted | $ | (2.36 | ) | $ | (0.72 | ) | $ | (2.66 | ) | $ | (1.21 | ) | ||||
| WEBTOON Entertainment Inc. Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (Unaudited) (in thousands of USD) | ||||||||
| For the Year Ended December 31, | ||||||||
| 2025 | 2024 | |||||||
| Operating activities: | ||||||||
| Net Loss | $ | (373,387 | ) | $ | (152,912 | ) | ||
| Adjustments to reconcile net loss to cash used in operating activities: | ||||||||
| Allowance for credit losses | 4,772 | 6,034 | ||||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 35,431 | 40,074 | ||||||
| Impairment losses on goodwill and other intangible assets | 336,487 | 69,743 | ||||||
| Operating lease expense | 9,690 | 10,446 | ||||||
| Loss (Gain) on foreign currency, net | (1,605 | ) | (2,519 | ) | ||||
| Deferred tax benefit | (28,965 | ) | (24,535 | ) | ||||
| Loss (Gain) on debt and equity securities, net | 8,605 | (2,263 | ) | |||||
| Loss (Gain) on equity method investment | (1,282 | ) | 1,123 | |||||
| Contingent consideration liability | - | (3,712 | ) | |||||
| Stock-based compensation | 41,907 | 87,379 | ||||||
| Gain on disposal of right-of-use assets, net | - | (1,899 | ) | |||||
| Change in severance benefit, net | 5,584 | 3,725 | ||||||
| Loss on investments in subsidiaries, net | - | 2,713 | ||||||
| Other non-cash items | 13 | (707 | ) | |||||
| Changes in operating assets and liabilities | ||||||||
| Changes in receivables | (873 | ) | (24,063 | ) | ||||
| Changes in other assets | 1,219 | (35,928 | ) | |||||
| Changes in accounts payable | 3,421 | 26,177 | ||||||
| Changes in accrued expenses | 6,216 | 1,869 | ||||||
| Changes in consumption taxes payables | (5,725 | ) | 3,287 | |||||
| Changes in contract liabilities | 2,400 | 21,584 | ||||||
| Changes in withholdings | (6,122 | ) | (8 | ) | ||||
| Changes in income tax payable - corporate tax | (8,857 | ) | 634 | |||||
| Changes in other liabilities | (6,540 | ) | (812 | ) | ||||
| Changes in operating lease liabilities | (8,062 | ) | (9,035 | ) | ||||
| Changes in deposits | (294 | ) | 2,444 | |||||
| Transfer of severance benefits | (2,817 | ) | (956 | ) | ||||
| Net cash provided by operating activities | $ | 11,216 | $ | 17,883 | ||||
| Investing activities: | ||||||||
| Proceeds from maturities of short-term investments | $ | 42,538 | $ | 68,018 | ||||
| Proceeds from sale of debt and equity securities | - | 2,970 | ||||||
| Proceeds from sale of property and equipment | 297 | 6,495 | ||||||
| Proceeds from sale of equity method investments | - | 5,938 | ||||||
| Proceeds from loan receivable | 1,684 | - | ||||||
| Payment from maturities of short-term investments | (26,372 | ) | (77,371 | ) | ||||
| Payment made for loan receivable | (904 | ) | (264 | ) | ||||
| Purchases of debt and equity securities | (6,801 | ) | (1,000 | ) | ||||
| Purchases of property and equipment | (7,619 | ) | (2,404 | ) | ||||
| Purchases of intangible assets | (10,292 | ) | (10,745 | ) | ||||
| Purchases of equity method investments | - | (9,068 | ) | |||||
| Acquisition of businesses, net of cash | (148 | ) | - | |||||
| Disposal of businesses, net of cash | - | (315 | ) | |||||
| Other investing activities | 119 | 470 | ||||||
| Net cash used in investing activities | $ | (7,498 | ) | $ | (17,276 | ) | ||
| Financing activities: | ||||||||
| Proceeds from issuance of common stock upon initial public offering, net of underwriting discounts and commissions | $ | - | $ | 292,950 | ||||
| Proceeds from issuance of common stock related to private placement | $ | - | $ | 50,000 | ||||
| Payments of initial public offering costs | $ | - | $ | (11,154 | ) | |||
| Proceeds from exercise of over-allotment, net of underwriting discounts and commissions | $ | - | $ | 26,786 | ||||
| Proceeds from stock option exercise | $ | 1,327 | $ | 746 | ||||
| Proceeds from short-term borrowings | 139 | - | ||||||
| Repayments of short-term borrowings | - | (3,597 | ) | |||||
| Repayments of long-term borrowings | - | (15 | ) | |||||
| Payment of contingent consideration related to business acquisition | - | (1,849 | ) | |||||
| Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities | $ | 1,466 | $ | 353,867 | ||||
| Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents | $ | 4,220 | $ | (13,817 | ) | |||
| Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents | 9,404 | 340,657 | ||||||
| Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of the year | 572,402 | 231,745 | ||||||
| Cash and cash equivalents at end of the year | $ | 581,806 | $ | 572,402 | ||||
| Supplemental disclosure: | ||||||||
| Income taxes paid | $ | 24,702 | $ | 25,675 | ||||
| Interest paid | 1 | 85 | ||||||
| Non-cash transactions: | ||||||||
| Reclassification of debt and equity securities to equity method investments | $ | - | $ | 18,701 | ||||
| Reclassification of deferred offering costs to additional paid-in capital upon IPO | - | 11,215 | ||||||
| Purchase of property and equipment included in accounts payable | - | 2 |
Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Measures
In addition to adjustments for foreign exchange fluctuations, we have also further adjusted revenue to exclude the impacts of deconsolidated and transferred operations to show growth or loss exclusive of these changes ("Revenue on a Constant Currency Basis"). Revenue on a Constant Currency Basis is a Non-GAAP metric that management believes adds value but has its limitations as an analytical tool, and you should not consider it in isolation or as a substitute for analysis of our results as reported under GAAP.
The following table presents a reconciliation of revenue to revenue on a constant currency basis, and ARPPU to ARPPU on a constant currency basis, respectively, for each of the periods presented.
| Three Months Ended December 31, | Year Ended December 31, | |||||||||||||||||
| (in thousands of USD, except percentages) | 2025 | 2024 | Change | 2025 | 2024 | Change | ||||||||||||
| Total Revenue | $ | 330,687 | $ | 352,847 | (6.3 | )% | $ | 1,382,705 | $ | 1,348,478 | 2.5% | |||||||
| Effect of deconsolidated and transferred operations | - | - | N/A | - | (147 | ) | (100.0)% | |||||||||||
| Effects of foreign currency rate fluctuations | 7,628 | - | N/A | 17,682 | - | N/A | ||||||||||||
| Revenue on a Constant Currency Basis | $ | 338,315 | $ | 352,847 | (4.1 | )% | $ | 1,400,387 | $ | 1,348,331 | 3.9% | |||||||
| Paid Content Revenue | 265,544 | 270,234 | (1.7 | )% | 1,087,496 | 1,083,026 | 0.4% | |||||||||||
| Effect of deconsolidated and transferred operations | - | - | N/A | - | (122 | ) | (100.0)% | |||||||||||
| Effects of foreign currency rate fluctuations | 5,894 | - | N/A | 11,491 | - | N/A | ||||||||||||
| Paid Content Revenue on a Constant Currency Basis | $ | 271,438 | $ | 270,234 | 0.4 | % | $ | 1,098,987 | $ | 1,082,904 | 1.5% | |||||||
| Advertising Revenue | 39,772 | 45,287 | (12.2 | )% | 164,257 | 166,087 | (1.1)% | |||||||||||
| Effects of foreign currency rate fluctuations | 854 | - | N/A | 2,510 | - | N/A | ||||||||||||
| Advertising Revenue on a Constant Currency Basis | $ | 40,626 | $ | 45,287 | (10.3 | )% | $ | 166,767 | $ | 166,087 | 0.4% | |||||||
| IP Adaptations Revenue | 25,371 | 37,326 | (32.0 | )% | 130,952 | 99,365 | 31.8% | |||||||||||
| Effect of deconsolidated and transferred operations | - | - | N/A | - | (25 | ) | (100.0)% | |||||||||||
| Effects of foreign currency rate fluctuations | 880 | - | N/A | 3,682 | - | N/A | ||||||||||||
| IP Adaptations Revenue on a Constant Currency Basis | $ | 26,251 | $ | 37,326 | (29.7 | )% | $ | 134,634 | $ | 99,340 | 35.5% | |||||||
| Paid Content Average Revenue Per Paying User ("ARPPU")1 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Korea paid content revenue | $ | 85,476 | $ | 86,239 | (0.9 | )% | $ | 331,158 | $ | 352,521 | (6.1)% | |||||||
| Korea ARPPU | $ | 7.75 | $ | 8.07 | (4.0 | )% | $ | 7.77 | $ | 7.84 | (0.9)% | |||||||
| Effect of deconsolidated and transferred operations | - | - | N/A | - | - | N/A | ||||||||||||
| Effects of foreign currency rate fluctuations | 0.40 | - | N/A | 0.44 | - | N/A | ||||||||||||
| Korea ARPPU on a Constant Currency Basis | $ | 8.14 | $ | 8.07 | 0.9 | % | $ | 8.21 | $ | 7.84 | 4.7% | |||||||
| Japan paid content revenue | $ | 145,909 | $ | 149,903 | (2.7 | )% | $ | 621,540 | $ | 594,302 | 4.6% | |||||||
| Japan ARPPU | $ | 23.02 | $ | 22.00 | 4.6 | % | $ | 23.16 | $ | 22.12 | 4.7% | |||||||
| Effects of foreign currency rate fluctuations | 0.24 | - | N/A | (0.28 | ) | - | N/A | |||||||||||
| Japan ARPPU on a Constant Currency Basis | $ | 23.26 | $ | 22.00 | 5.7 | % | $ | 22.88 | $ | 22.12 | 3.4% | |||||||
| Rest of World paid content revenue | $ | 34,159 | $ | 34,093 | 0.2 | % | $ | 134,799 | $ | 136,203 | (1.0)% | |||||||
| Rest of World ARPPU | $ | 6.52 | $ | 6.87 | (5.1 | )% | $ | 6.60 | $ | 6.57 | 0.5% | |||||||
| Effects of foreign currency rate fluctuations | - | - | N/A | - | - | N/A | ||||||||||||
| Rest of World ARPPU on a Constant Currency Basis | $ | 6.52 | $ | 6.87 | (5.1 | )% | $ | 6.60 | $ | 6.57 | 0.5% |
1ARPPU is calculated by taking Paid Content revenue and dividing it by the number of monthly paid users ("MPU") for such month, averaged over each month in the given period. ARPPU on a constant currency basis is calculated by dividing Paid Content revenue on a constant currency basis by the number of MPU for such month, averaged over each month in the given period. Where each metric is country specific, the numerator is Paid Content revenue on a constant currency basis by country and the denominator is users by country.
The following table presents a reconciliation of net loss to EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin for each of the periods presented.
| Three Months Ended December 31, | Year Ended December 31, | |||||||||||||||
| (in thousands of USD, except percentages) | 2025 | 2024 | 2025 | 2024 | ||||||||||||
| Net Loss | $ | (336,485 | ) | $ | (102,563 | ) | $ | (373,387 | ) | $ | (152,912 | ) | ||||
| Plus (minus): | ||||||||||||||||
| Interest income | (4,509 | ) | (6,030 | ) | (19,170 | ) | (15,820 | ) | ||||||||
| Interest expense | 50 | 1 | 56 | 45 | ||||||||||||
| Income tax (benefit) expense | (18,363 | ) | 4,928 | (16,022 | ) | 3,604 | ||||||||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 10,647 | 12,121 | 35,431 | 40,074 | ||||||||||||
| EBITDA | $ | (348,660 | ) | $ | (91,543 | ) | $ | (373,092 | ) | $ | (125,009 | ) | ||||
| Impairment losses on goodwill and other intangible assets(1) | 336,486 | 69,743 | 336,486 | 69,743 | ||||||||||||
| Stock-based compensation expense(2) | 6,784 | 14,016 | 41,907 | 82,321 | ||||||||||||
| Loss on fair value instruments, net(3) | 4,588 | 2,880 | 8,604 | (2,263 | ) | |||||||||||
| Restructuring and IPO-related costs(4) | 1,013 | 1,405 | 6,816 | 42,050 | ||||||||||||
| Loss on equity method investments, net(5) | 365 | 53 | (1,282 | ) | 1,123 | |||||||||||
| Adjusted EBITDA | $ | 576 | $ | (3,446 | ) | $ | 19,439 | $ | 67,965 | |||||||
| Net loss margin | (101.8 | )% | (29.1 | )% | (27.0 | )% | (11.3 | )% | ||||||||
| Adjusted EBITDA Margin | 0.2 | % | (1.0 | )% | 1.5 | % | 5.0 | % | ||||||||
| Weighted average shares outstanding (Basic and Diluted) | 130,560,064 | 128,787,043 | 130,177,475 | 119,231,997 | ||||||||||||
| EPS (Basic and Diluted) | (2.36 | ) | (0.72 | ) | (2.66 | ) | (1.21 | ) | ||||||||
| Adjusted EPS (Basic and Diluted)(6) | 0.00 | (0.03 | ) | 0.15 | 0.57 |
| (1) | Represents impairment losses on goodwill for Wattpad Corp., Wattpad WEBTOON Studios Corp, Munpia Inc., Purple Duck and Jakga Company Inc. for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2025. For the quarter and year ended December 31, 2025, the amounts also include a $1.0 million impairment of the definite lived intangible assets for Bootcamp Limited Partnership. For the quarter and year ended December 31, 2024, represents impairment losses on goodwill for the Company's reporting units; Wattpad Corp., Wattpad WEBTOON Studios Corp, Munpia Inc. and Jakga Company Inc. |
| (2) | Represents non-cash stock-based compensation expense related to WEBTOON's equity incentive plan and stock-based compensation plans of NAVER Corp., Munpia Inc. and LOCUS Inc., for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2024. For the quarter and year ended December 31, 2025, these amounts also include non-cash stock based compensation, including amounts which are cash settled. |
| (3) | Represents unrealized net loss (gain) of financial assets measured at FVPL, which include the Company's equity investments. |
| (4) | Represents expenses that we do not consider representative of the operating performance of the business. For the quarter and year ended December 31, 2025, these amounts include legal fees and advisory fees. For the quarter and year ended December 31, 2024, these amounts were comprised of a $30.0 million one-time CEO bonus and legal and advisory fees related to the IPO. |
| (5) | Represents our proportionate share of recognized losses associated with our investments accounted for using the equity method. |
| (6) | The numerator for Adjusted EPS is calculated by adjusting Net Loss by the same items in the Net Loss to Adjusted EBITDA reconciliation. The denominator for computing Adjusted EPS is the same as that used for Diluted EPS. |
Contact Information
Investor Relations
Soohwan Kim, CFA
...
Corporate Communications
Kiel Hume
...

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