Q4 FYE 12/23 Results Presentation - Q&AThe following is a summary of questions received from participants at the earnings presentation held onFebruary 13, 2024. The questions are answered by Founder & Group CEO Masatoshi Kumagai, CFO
Masashi Yasuda, and GMO Ad Partners Representative Director Hashiguchi. Some of the answers havebeen supplemented by the IR department.
●Consolidated Financial Results【Q1】
Regarding the outlook for consolidated operating income for FY December 2024, inaddition to the increase in income from the core businesses, are there any businesses
expected to provide additional benefits, or are there negative factors that could leadto a reactionary decline?
【A1】
For the 2024 fiscal year, we expect our infrastructure, which is mainly driven by solid(Kumagai)
recurring revenues, to continue its growth trajectory. The investment in GPU servers
will undergo proportional amortization, minimizing its impact on our financialperformance. In the financial sector, despite the effects of provisions for our Thai
securities business over the last two years, we anticipate a reduced impact in thecurrent fiscal period.
To summarize, although 2021 and 2022 were marked by some discontinuous factors,
2023 is expected to be characterized by fewer such factors, and it would be beneficial
to adhere to the current trend line.
【Q2】

【A2】
(Kumagai)In the financial business, there was an increase in the balance of non-performing loans
related to the Thai securities business. Also, in the cryptoassets business, hash rates in
the mining business remained sluggish, etc. We would like to hear the president'sassessment.
As for the financial business, FX, our mainstay product, posted record-highperformance. In addition to profitability improvement measures, streamlining of theorganization and system improvements were successful. In the Thai securities
business, additional provisions were incurred due to fluctuations in the stock prices ofsecurities underwritten as collateral. Since there is little room for further decline in thestock price level, we believe the downside is limited. We are also restructuring thebusiness model itself and working to reduce the balance of receivables.
In the cryptoassets business, we believe that the boom in the crypto asset market will
be a tailwind for the exchange business. On the other hand, we do not plan to actively
develop our mining business in the future.

●Internet Infrastructure【Q3】
I believe the Q4 2023 financial results were notably strengthened by the infrastructurebusiness. It seems that divisions other than the GMO Payment Gateway are particularly
contributing to this performance. Could you explain the factors behind this?
【A3】
As observed, Q4 2023 demonstrated significant strength in both payment and non(Yasuda)
payment service sectors. Specifically, the segment overall achieved an increase of 4.2
billion yen, with notable contributions including 1.4 billion yen from GMO BrandSecurity, 0.7 billion yen from GMO-PG, 0.6 billion yen from GMO-IG, and 0.3 billion yenfrom GMO Cybersecurity by IERAE.

【Q4】
【A4】
(Kumagai)

【Q5】

【A5】
(Kumagai)

The contribution of GMO Brand Security is prominent as a driver of profit growth in Q4
2023, but what should we think about sustainability?
We do not anticipate that the scale seen this quarter will continue indefinitely. However,this is not merely a one-off opportunity; there is some degree of sustainability to it.
Given the steady demand, we are currently exploring ways to develop a sustainable
revenue model for the future.
Could you provide more detailed information on investing in GPU servers? I am
particularly interested in the relationship between the investment amount and any
available subsidies, the amortization period for this investment, and the target
customer base we expect to serve.
We are planning an additional investment of 10 billion yen, contingent upon thesuccessful approval of our grant application. While the approval process is currentlyunder meticulous review, We are hopeful that all necessary requirements will be met.
The investment is expected to be depreciated over a period of 5 years. As for thebusiness model, it will focus on providing cloud hosting services specifically designed
for AI developers.

●Online Advertising & Media【Q6】
In the financial results following Q3 2023, it was mentioned that the demand wasreasonably good, yet this doesn't seem to reflect in the P&L statement. Could you
elaborate on your perspective regarding the business environment and how you areaddressing it?
【A6】
As noted, the performance in the first half of 2023 maintained the strong level of the(Hashiguchi)
previous year. However, with the full-scale reopening of the economy in the latter halfof 2023, we've observed a trend where clients are exercising increased caution inbudget allocation, influenced by the segmentation and diversification of marketingstrategies. This trend has presented challenges for our advertising agency operations.
Additionally, our in-house developed ad network advertising has faced further
challenges due to more stringent advertising standards and the adverse effects of
cookie regulations. To address these issues, we are focusing on our proprietaryproducts by integrating our advertising agency and ad tech entities within the group,
aiming for a V-shaped recovery.