Kanzhun Ltd

KANZHUN LIMITED operates as a leading online recruitment platform in China, primarily through its mobile application "BOSS Zhipin," which aims to reinvent how job seekers and enterprises connect and engage. The company's business model is centered on providing curated job opportunities for job seekers and efficient, data-informed recruiting decisions for enterprises. The platform generates most of its revenue from paid services offered to enterprise users, with approximately 99% of revenues in 2023, 2024, and 2025 derived from this segment ¹. The company's core strategy involves a connection-oriented monetization approach, supplemented by value-added tools for recruitment efficiency. Job seekers, on the other hand, can use the platform's core services for free, with optional paid value-added services like resume exposure boosters and AI interview training ². The company serves a diverse user base, including white- and gold-collar professionals, blue-collar job seekers, and college students, as well as a broad spectrum of enterprise users ranging from small businesses to Fortune China 500 companies ³.

The company's platform is built on a mobile-native foundation, leveraging AI and big data to enhance matching accuracy, hiring efficiency, and engagement quality. Key innovations include a shift from web portals to tailored mobile platforms, from keyword search to dynamic, multimodal, and AI-curated recommendations, from one-way applications to rich, real-time communication, and from fragmented data to insightful workforce intelligence. The platform's self-reinforcing flywheel is driven by user and data momentum, where increased job seeker participation attracts more enterprises, and more interactions generate data that refines AI algorithms for better matching. The company has developed a proprietary large language model, Nanbeige, which powers core workflows like search, recommendation, and AI-facilitated communications and interviews ⁴.

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2025, KANZHUN LIMITED reported total revenues of RMB8,267,518 thousand (US$1,182,228 thousand) ⁵, an increase from RMB7,355,677 thousand in 2024 ⁶ and RMB5,952,028 thousand in 2023 ⁷. The company achieved a net income of RMB2,690,467 thousand (US$384,729 thousand) in 2025 ⁸, up from RMB1,567,026 thousand in 2024 ⁹ and RMB1,099,218 thousand in 2023 ¹⁰. Operating income for 2025 was RMB2,464,101 thousand (US$352,367 thousand) ¹¹. The company's cash and cash equivalents stood at RMB4,104,917 thousand (US$586,997 thousand) as of December 31, 2025 ¹². Total liabilities were RMB4,486,976 thousand (US$641,630 thousand) ¹³. The company does not explicitly disclose gross profit, gross margin, diluted EPS, free cash flow, or total debt in the provided condensed consolidating financial statements.

Year-over-year, total revenues grew by 12.4% from RMB7,355,677 thousand in 2024 to RMB8,267,518 thousand in 2025 ¹⁴. Net income saw a substantial increase of 71.7% from RMB1,567,026 thousand in 2024 to RMB2,690,467 thousand in 2025 ¹⁵. The number of paid enterprise customers increased from 6.1 million in 2024 to 6.8 million in 2025 ¹⁶, and average MAU grew from 53.0 million in 2024 to 60.7 million in 2025 ¹⁷. Sales and marketing expenses as a percentage of revenues decreased from 28.2% in 2024 to 20.5% in 2025 ¹⁸, indicating improved operational efficiency.

During 2025, KANZHUN LIMITED completed a share offer of 34,500,000 Class A ordinary shares, raising approximately HK$2.2 billion (US$280.2 million) in net proceeds ¹⁹. The company's board of directors approved an annual dividend policy in August 2025 and declared an annual cash dividend for 2025 of US$0.084 per Class A ordinary share, or US$0.168 per ADS, totaling approximately US$77.9 million ²⁰. The company also continued its share repurchase program, with amendments in August 2025 extending it through August 28, 2026, and authorizing repurchases of up to US$250 million ²¹. In February 2026, the company's proprietary large language model, Nanbeige, once ranked first among HuggingFace's trending text models ²². The company also received ISO/IEC 27001 certification for its information security management system in June 2025 and renewed its Personal Information Protection Certification from the China Cybersecurity Review Technology and Certification Center (CCRC) in 2025 ²³.

KANZHUN LIMITED's management intends to declare and distribute a dividend each year in accordance with its annual dividend policy, approved in August 2025. Under this policy, the board of directors expects to allocate no less than 50% of the company's adjusted net income, a non-GAAP financial measure, of the preceding fiscal year for distribution of dividend and share repurchases for each of the next three years starting from 2026 ²⁴. For 2025, an annual cash dividend of US$0.084 per Class A ordinary share, or US$0.168 per ADS, totaling approximately US$77.9 million, has been approved ²⁵.

A major growth vector for the company is the continued investment in and application of AI technologies, including its proprietary large language model, Nanbeige. Nanbeige, which once ranked first among HuggingFace's trending text models in February 2026, powers core platform workflows such as search, recommendation, and AI-facilitated communications and interviews ²⁶. The company is also developing a suite of AI applications and tools to further optimize candidate screening and communication, aiming for a results-driven recruitment ecosystem. These AI capabilities are being integrated into commercialization products for enterprise users, with various AI recruitment functions in different stages of application, gray-scale testing, or exploration, having received positive user feedback ²⁷. The company is also exploring the use of AI to expand into new business areas, such as closed-loop services ²⁸.

Another growth area involves expanding the user base in diverse industries and regions, particularly focusing on blue-collar job seekers, and diversifying product and service offerings. The company aims to achieve full coverage of users' career lifecycle through closed-loop service offerings and explore other potential sectors in the human resource service market ²⁹. This expansion requires significant resource investments, including in technology and data insights, and efforts to increase presence in less developed cities by offering free or lower-fee services or subscription packages to small and mid-sized businesses ³⁰.

Operationally, the company's sales and marketing expenses as a percentage of revenues have shown a decreasing trend, from 33.5% in 2023 to 28.2% in 2024 and 20.5% in 2025 ³¹. While the company has historically invested significantly in these activities, it may need to further increase sales and marketing expenses in the future to maintain and enhance brand awareness and loyalty, and to attract and retain users ³². The company expects to continue investing in its infrastructure to provide services more rapidly and reliably to users ³³. As of December 31, 2025, the company had a team of 1,131 research and development personnel dedicated to technology, data, and related functions ³⁴.

Regarding capital allocation, the board of directors approved amendments to the share repurchase program in August 2025, extending it for a 12-month period through August 28, 2026, and authorizing repurchases of up to US$250 million of shares during this extended period ³⁵. Further amendments in March 2026 extended the program through August 2027, authorizing repurchases of up to US$400 million ³⁶. The company also plans to allocate no less than 50% of its adjusted net income for dividend distribution and share repurchases for the next three years starting from 2026 ³⁷.

The company explicitly flags structural headwinds and execution risks related to the deployment, application, and use of AI technologies, including potential technological, legal, and regulatory risks. These include the continuous deployment, maintenance, and operation of AI being expensive and complex, with potential for unforeseen difficulties, performance problems, or undetected defects ³⁸. There is also a risk that AI models could be incorrectly designed, trained on poor quality data, used without sufficient oversight, or produce flawed outputs, leading to reputational damage or legal liability ³⁹. Dependence on third-party AI technologies and infrastructure also poses risks regarding availability, pricing, stability, and reliability ⁴⁰. Advances in AI may also challenge the existing business model by reducing certain types of recruitment demand or leading to new disruptive products and services in the industry ⁴¹. The evolving regulatory landscape for generative AI services in China, with new or more detailed laws and regulations expected, could increase compliance costs and affect business operations ⁴².

Geographic, regulatory, and macro factors identified as constraints include a slowdown or adverse development in the Chinese or global economy and geopolitical conflicts, which may lower hiring willingness and budgets of enterprise users ⁴³. Heightened tensions in international relations, particularly between the United States and China, including restrictions on trade and investment, could materially and adversely affect the business ⁴⁴. Specifically, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Final Rule on outbound investment, effective January 2, 2025, and the proposed "America First Investment Policy" and the COINS Act, signed in December 2025, could impact the company's ability to raise capital if it were deemed a "Covered Foreign Person" ⁴⁵. Uncertainties in the interpretation and enforcement of PRC laws and regulations, including the PRC Foreign Investment Law and the Overseas Listing Regulations, could also affect the company's corporate structure and future capital raising activities ⁴⁶. The company also notes that it has not obtained a License for Online Transmission of Audio-Visual Programs, which could subject it to penalties or investigations ⁴⁷.

KANZHUN LIMITED faces several material risks, including those related to its corporate structure, business operations, and the broader macroeconomic and geopolitical environment. A significant structural risk stems from the company's reliance on contractual arrangements with its Variable Interest Entity (VIE) in the Chinese mainland, which conducts substantially all of its revenue-generating operations. If the PRC government determines these arrangements do not comply with foreign investment laws or if interpretations of existing laws change, the company could face severe penalties, be forced to relinquish its interests in the VIE, or be unable to direct its activities, potentially rendering its ADSs worthless ⁴⁸. The company also highlights uncertainties regarding the interpretation and enforcement of PRC laws, including the new PRC Company Law (2023 Revision) which requires full payment of subscribed registered capital within five years, potentially impacting its PRC subsidiaries' capital contribution obligations ⁴⁹. Geopolitical tensions, particularly between the United States and China, pose a risk, with the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Final Rule on outbound investment (effective January 2, 2025) and the COINS Act (signed December 18, 2025) potentially limiting the company's ability to raise capital if it were deemed a "Covered Foreign Person" ⁵⁰. Operationally, the company's extensive use of AI technologies, including its proprietary large language model Nanbeige, introduces technological, legal, and regulatory risks, such as potential for undetected errors, biases, or non-compliance with evolving generative AI regulations in China, which could increase compliance costs and affect business operations ⁵¹. The company has not obtained a License for Online Transmission of Audio-Visual Programs for certain services, which could lead to penalties or investigations ⁵². Furthermore, the company does not maintain business interruption insurance or key-man insurance, and any uninsured business disruption could result in substantial costs and diversion of resources ⁵³.

Management's overall tone emphasizes a commitment to leveraging technology, particularly AI, to enhance user experience and operational efficiency, while also focusing on corporate social responsibility and sustainable development. They highlight the continuous investment in and application of AI technologies, including the proprietary Nanbeige large language model, to improve recommendation efficiency, matching accuracy, and to explore new business areas like closed-loop services ⁵⁴. Strategic priorities include expanding the user base across diverse industries and regions, especially blue-collar job seekers, and diversifying product and service offerings to cover the full career lifecycle ⁵⁵. Management also communicated a specific forward-looking statement regarding capital allocation, intending to declare and distribute a dividend each year and expecting to allocate no less than 50% of the company's adjusted net income of the preceding fiscal year for dividend distribution and share repurchases for each of the next three years starting from 2026 ⁵⁶. For 2025, an annual cash dividend of US$0.084 per Class A ordinary share, or US$0.168 per ADS, totaling approximately US$77.9 million, has been approved ⁵⁷.