CJ Olive Networks earns first-ever A+ credit rating

CJ Olive Networks has received an A+ corporate credit rating from two of South Korea's major credit rating agencies, in recognition of its competitiveness in AI transformation services and its stable financial structure.

The company announced Monday that both NICE Credit Rating and Korea Ratings assigned it a corporate credit rating of A+ with a stable outlook — the first time CJ Olive Networks has achieved the A+ designation.

The ratings were sought to bolster the company's credibility as it competes for new contracts. Both agencies cited CJ Olive Networks' stable business foundation, revenue growth driven by an expanding non-affiliate customer base, and a low-debt financial structure as key positive factors.

Non-affiliate sales drew particularly strong marks. According to NICE Credit Rating, CJ Olive Networks' sales to non-affiliate customers grew at an average annual rate of 18.4 percent between 2021 and 2025 — far outpacing the 5.9 percent average annual growth in affiliate sales over the same period. Overall sales grew at an average annual rate of 9.4 percent.

The share of non-affiliate sales has also been rising consistently, climbing from 28.6 percent in 2023 to 32.2 percent in 2024 and 33.2 percent last year.

Business competitiveness was another key factor in the assessments. Korea Ratings highlighted CJ Olive Networks' accumulated experience and technical capabilities in building AI transformation solutions across diverse industries — including food, retail, logistics and entertainment — as a driver of its expanding business base.

The company is pursuing industry-specific AI transformation projects spanning smart factories and logistics, AI data centers, and broadcasting and media. It is also broadening its footprint in data and marketing platforms, including CJ ONE and mobile gift voucher services.

Financial stability also received positive marks. Both agencies noted that CJ Olive Networks maintains a low-debt financial structure and generates steady profits on the back of a stable business foundation, and projected that it would sustain strong financial health going forward.

"This rating is meaningful in that our business competitiveness and financial stability have been objectively recognized, and we expect it to reinforce our corporate credibility as we pursue a wider range of business opportunities," a company official said. "We will continue to strengthen our AI transformation expertise by industry and sustain growth on the foundation of customer trust."

Meanwhile, CJ Olive Networks has maintained earnings momentum this year. Second-quarter sales reached 254.5 billion won ($192 million), up 28.8 percent from a year earlier, while operating profit rose 15.8 percent to 20 billion won. For the first half of the year, cumulative sales came to 466.3 billion won and operating profit totaled 31.3 billion won, each up 21 percent from the same period last year.