You should read the following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and the related notes included elsewhere in this annual report. This discussion contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties about our business and operations. Our actual results and the timing of selected events may differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including those we describe under “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors” and elsewhere in this annual report. A. Operating Results Key Factors Affecting Our Results of Operations Our business and results of operations are affected by a number of general factors that impact China’s online recruitment service market, including, among others: ● China’s overall economic condition and its influence on job market and recruitment industry; ● greater challenges in hiring leading to the increasing adoption of efficient recruitment services; ● digitalization of the recruitment industry; ● growth of the blue-collar sector; ● the high growth potential in online penetration among employers; ● the competitive landscape of China’s online recruitment service industry and our market position therein; ● government policies and regulations affecting China’s Internet industry as well as online recruitment service industry; and ● the development and deployment of new technologies, including AI, and their impact on the recruitment service market and the hiring demand of our clients. 115 Table of Contents Unfavorable changes in any of these general conditions could negatively impact demand for our services and materially and adversely affect our results of operations. While our business is influenced by these general factors, our results of operations are more directly affected by the following company-specific factors. Our ability to expand our large and active user base and enhance user engagement A large and active user base is the core reason why enterprise users and job seekers are attracted to and continue to use our online recruitment platform, as enterprise users primarily look for a large talent pool to recruit from and job seekers value access to a multitude of actively hiring employers when using recruitment services. We believe it is important to grow our MAU, which we view as a key indicator of the size of our active user base, in order to support our business development. Our average MAU grew by 25.3% from 42.3 million in 2023 to 53.0 million in 2024, and further grew by 14.5% to 60.7 million in 2025. Whether we can continue to grow our MAU mainly depends on our ability to provide high-quality user experience. To this end, we will continue to focus on providing a personalized user experience through enhancing our big data technology capabilities that power the recommendation engine, offering more efficient and flexible communication methods for our users, and improving the reliability of our online recruitment platform. The growth of paid enterprise customers Growth in the number of paid enterprise customers is a key driver of our revenue growth, as most of our revenues come from providing online recruitment services to paid enterprise customers. The continued growth of our business therefore depends on the growth of paid enterprise customers. Our paid enterprise customers grew by 17.3% from 5.2 million in 2023 to 6.1 million in 2024, and further grew by 11.5% to 6.8 million in 2025. In order to improve the growth of paid enterprise customers, we will continue to focus our resources on maintaining relationships with existing enterprise users, improving service quality, converting free enterprise users and their companies to paid enterprise customers, exploring new services, features and functionalities responsive to user needs, promoting awareness of our brands, and marketing our services to a wider user group and in more geographical markets. Our ability to expand our services to existing paid enterprise customers We believe that there is a significant opportunity for cross selling more of our online recruitment services to our existing paid enterprise customers. Among our paid enterprise customers, those who contributed revenues of RMB5,000 or more to us in a twelve-month period ended on the end of a given period historically accounted for the majority of our revenue source in 2023, 2024 and 2025. Paid enterprise customers who contributed RMB5,000 or more, but less than RMB50,000 of revenues to us in a twelve-month period ended on the end of a given period, or mid-sized accounts, contributed 35.8%, 34.6% and 32.3% of our total revenues in 2023, 2024 and 2025, respectively. In addition, paid enterprise customers who contributed RMB50,000 or more of revenues to us in a twelve-month period ended on the end of a given period, or key accounts, contributed 21.2%, 24.1% and 25.0% of our total revenues in 2023, 2024 and 2025, respectively. We value key accounts because they typically are large enterprises with steady demand for our online recruitment services and a stable recruiting budget. The number of key accounts increased by 27.2% from 7,440 in 2023 to 9,465 in 2024, and further increased by 11.6% to 10,567 in 2025. The solid revenue contribution of mid-sized accounts and key accounts speaks to the importance of expanding our services to existing paid enterprise customers, which will increase their spending. To expand our services to existing paid enterprise customers, we plan to introduce new service offerings, better educate existing paid enterprise customers about the value of additional services, and recommend more customized services to each paid enterprise customer based on analysis of its historical hiring behaviors. Our ability to promote our brands and market our services more effectively Our investment in branding, marketing and promotional activities contributes to our user acquisition, and whether such investment is cost-effective has a significant impact on our results of operations. To achieve maximum return for our branding and marketing investments, we set and adjust our branding and marketing strategies based on data analytics of factors such as occupational structure, average income of target demographics, and characteristics of different marketing channels. Our advertising expenses represented 9.8%, 7.2% and 3.9% of our revenues in 2023, 2024 and 2025, respectively. The declining proportion of our advertising expenses to revenues signifies higher efficiency of our advertising and marketing activities. We will continue to monitor and manage our advertising expenses. Our ability to maintain our operating efficiency 116 Table of Contents Our results of operations are further affected by our operating efficiency in aspects other than sales and marketing, as measured by our total operating cost and expenses excluding sales and marketing expenses as a percentage of our revenues. Our total operating cost and expenses excluding sales and marketing expenses trended downwards as a percentage of our revenues from 2023 to 2025. As our business grows further, we expect to maintain and improve our operating efficiency. Key Components of Results of Operations Revenues We derive most of our revenues from paid enterprise customers on our online recruitment platform. We provide online recruitment services to enterprise customers that allow them to access and interact with job seekers and better manage their recruitment process. The following table sets forth the components of our revenues by amounts and percentages of our revenues for the periods presented. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ For the Year Ended December 31, ​ ​ 2023 ​ 2024 ​ 2025 ​ ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ US$ ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ (in thousands, except for percentages) Revenues ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Online recruitment services to enterprise customers 5,889,101 98.9 7,270,026 98.8 8,192,714 1,171,543 99.1 Others 62,927 1.1 85,651 1.2 74,804 10,697 0.9 Total revenues 5,952,028 100.0 7,355,677 100.0 8,267,518 1,182,240 100.0 ​ Operating cost and expenses Our operating cost and expenses consist of cost of revenues, sales and marketing expenses, research and development expenses, and general and administrative expenses. Cost of revenues. Our cost of revenues primarily consists of payment processing cost, payroll and other employee-related expenses, server and bandwidth service cost and server depreciation. ​ 117 Table of Contents Sales and marketing expenses. Our sales and marketing expenses primarily consist of (i) payroll and other employee-related expenses for our sales and marketing staff, (ii) advertising expenses, including expenses relating to branding activities and online traffic acquisition, and (iii) other miscellaneous expenses for our sales functions. ​ Research and development expenses. Our research and development expenses primarily consist of payroll and other employee-related expenses for our research and development staff. General and administrative expenses. Our general and administrative expenses primarily consist of payroll and other employee-related expenses for our managerial and administrative staff. Results of Operations The following table sets forth a summary of our consolidated results of operations for the periods presented, both in absolute amounts and as percentages of our total revenues. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ For the Year Ended December 31, ​ ​ 2023 ​ 2024 ​ 2025 ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ US$ ​ ​ ​ % ​ ​ (in thousands, except for percentages) Revenues ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Online recruitment services to enterprise customers 5,889,101 98.9 7,270,026 98.8 8,192,714 1,171,543 99.1 Others 62,927 1.1 85,651 1.2 74,804 10,697 0.9 Total revenues 5,952,028 100.0 7,355,677 100.0 8,267,518 1,182,240 100.0 Operating cost and expenses ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Cost of revenues(1) (1,059,861) (17.8) (1,239,712) (16.8) (1,235,153) (176,625) (14.9) Sales and marketing expenses(1) (1,991,226) (33.5) (2,073,052) (28.2) (1,693,245) (242,131) (20.5) Research and development expenses(1) (1,543,568) (25.9) (1,815,809) (24.7) (1,653,601) (236,462) (20.0) General and administrative expenses(1) (811,787) (13.6) (1,093,949) (14.9) (1,199,367) (171,507) (14.5) Total operating cost and expenses (5,406,442) (90.8) (6,222,522) (84.6) (5,781,366) (826,725) (69.9) Other operating income/(expenses), net 35,385 0.6 39,791 0.5 (22,051) (3,153) (0.3) Income from operations 580,971 9.8 1,172,946 15.9 2,464,101 352,362 29.8 Interest and investment income, net 606,757 10.2 625,282 8.5 705,963 100,951 8.6 Foreign exchange gain/(loss) 1,088 0.0 (68) (0.0) 11,161 1,596 0.1 Other income, net 32,973 0.6 34,500 0.5 18,987 2,715 0.2 Income before income tax expenses 1,221,789 20.6 1,832,660 24.9 3,200,212 457,624 38.7 Income tax expenses (122,571) (2.1) (265,634) (3.6) (509,745) (72,893) (6.2) Net income 1,099,218 18.5 1,567,026 21.3 2,690,467 384,731 32.5 (1) Share-based compensation expenses were allocated as follows: ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ For the Year Ended December 31, ​ ​ 2023 ​ 2024 ​ 2025 ​ ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ US$ ​ ​ (in thousands) Share-based compensation expenses ​ ​ ​ ​ Cost of revenues 46,395 43,332 22,550 3,225 Sales and marketing expenses 262,431 280,668 239,800 34,291 Research and development expenses 418,769 421,411 317,653 45,424 General and administrative expenses 329,372 398,274 331,984 47,473 Total 1,056,967 1,143,685 911,987 130,413 ​ ​ 118 Table of Contents Year Ended December 31, 2025 compared to Year Ended December 31, 2024 Revenues Our revenues primarily come from online recruitment services provided to paid enterprise customers. Our revenues increased by 12.4% from RMB7.4 billion in 2024 to RMB8.3 billion (US$1.2 billion) in 2025. This increase was primarily driven by the paid enterprise customer growth. In particular, revenues from online recruitment services to enterprise customers increased by 12.7% from RMB7.3 billion in 2024 to RMB8.2 billion (US$1.2 billion) in 2025. Revenues from other services, which mainly comprise paid value-added services offered to job seekers, decreased from RMB85.7 million in 2024 to RMB74.8 million (US$10.7 million) in 2025. The decrease was mainly driven by the optimization of certain value-added features. The Company simplified these offerings to enhance the value proposition for job seekers, prioritizing platform engagement and long-term ecosystem growth. Cost of revenues Our cost of revenues was RMB1,235.2 million (US$176.6 million) in 2025, relatively flat with RMB1,239.7 million in 2024. The decreases in employee-related expenses and rental expenses were largely offset by the increase in payment processing cost. Sales and marketing expenses Our sales and marketing expenses decreased by 18.3% from RMB2.1 billion in 2024 to RMB1.7 billion (US$242.1 million) in 2025, primarily due to decreases in advertising and marketing expenses, employee-related expenses and rental expenses. Research and development expenses Our research and development expenses decreased by 8.9% from RMB1.8 billion in 2024 to RMB1.7 billion (US$236.5 million) in 2025, primarily due to a decrease in employee-related expenses. General and administrative expenses Our general and administrative expenses increased by 9.6% from RMB1.1 billion in 2024 to RMB1.2 billion (US$171.5 million) in 2025, mainly due to an impairment of intangible assets. Income from operations As a result of the foregoing, our income from operations increased by 110.1% from RMB1.2 billion in 2024 to RMB2.5 billion (US$352.4 million) in 2025. Interest and investment income Our interest and investment income increased by 12.9% from RMB625.3 million in 2024 to RMB706.0 million (US$101.0 million) in 2025, primarily attributable to an increase in investments in time deposits and financial products in 2025. Income tax expenses Our income tax expenses increased by 91.9% from RMB265.6 million in 2024 to RMB509.7 million (US$72.9 million) in 2025, which was mainly due to the growth in income before income tax expenses as well as the provision of a top-up tax of RMB37.6 million (US$5.4 million) under the Pillar Two rules and withholding tax of RMB14.7 million (US$2.1 million). Net income Our net income increased by 71.7% from RMB1.6 billion in 2024 to RMB2.7 billion (US$384.7 million) in 2025. ​ 119 Table of Contents Year Ended December 31, 2024 compared to Year Ended December 31, 2023 Revenues Our revenues primarily come from online recruitment services provided to paid enterprise customers. Our revenues increased by 23.6% from RMB6.0 billion in 2023 to RMB7.4 billion in 2024. This increase was primarily driven by the growth in paid enterprise customers. In particular, revenues from online recruitment services to enterprise customers increased by 23.4% from RMB5.9 billion in 2023 to RMB7.3 billion in 2024. Revenues from other services, which mainly comprise paid value-added services offered to job seekers, increased by 36.2% from RMB62.9 million in 2023 to RMB85.7 million in 2024. Cost of revenues Our cost of revenues increased by 17.0% from RMB1.1 billion in 2023 to RMB1.2 billion in 2024, primarily due to increases in server and bandwidth cost, payment processing cost and cost related to other businesses. Sales and marketing expenses Our sales and marketing expenses increased by 4.1% from RMB2.0 billion in 2023 to RMB2.1 billion in 2024, primarily due to an increase in employee-related expenses, partially offset by a decrease in advertising and marketing expenses. Research and development expenses Our research and development expenses increased by 17.6% from RMB1.5 billion in 2023 to RMB1.8 billion in 2024, primarily due to an increase in investments in technology. General and administrative expenses Our general and administrative expenses increased by 34.7% from RMB811.8 million in 2023 to RMB1.1 billion in 2024, mainly due to an increase in employee-related expenses. Income from operations As a result of the foregoing, our income from operations increased by 101.9% from RMB581.0 million in 2023 to RMB1.2 billion in 2024. Interest and investment income Our interest and investment income increased by 3.0% from RMB606.8 million in 2023 to RMB625.3 million in 2024, primarily attributable to an increase in investments in financial products in 2024. Income tax expenses Our income tax expenses increased by 116.6% from RMB122.6 million in 2023 to RMB265.6 million in 2024. Net income As a result of the foregoing, our net income increased by 42.6% from RMB1.1 billion in 2023 to RMB1.6 billion in 2024. Taxation Cayman Islands The Cayman Islands currently levies no taxes on corporations based upon profits, income, gains, or appreciation. There are no other taxes likely to be material to us levied by the government of the Cayman Islands except for stamp duties, which may be applicable on instruments executed in, or brought within the jurisdiction of, the Cayman Islands. There are no exchange control regulations or currency restrictions in the Cayman Islands. 120 Table of Contents Hong Kong Our subsidiaries in Hong Kong are subject to 16.5% Hong Kong profit tax for taxable income earned. Additionally, payments of dividends by our subsidiaries in Hong Kong to our company are not subject to any Hong Kong withholding tax. No provision for Hong Kong profits tax was made as we had no estimated assessable profit that was subject to Hong Kong profits tax during 2023, 2024 and 2025. PRC Under the PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law effective from January 1, 2008, and amended on February 24, 2017 and December 29, 2018, our subsidiaries in the Chinese mainland and the VIE are subject to the statutory rate of 25%, subject to preferential tax treatments available to qualified enterprises as stipulated under PRC tax laws and regulations. Enterprises that qualify as “high and new technology enterprises” are entitled to a preferential rate of 15% for three years. Enterprises that qualify as “small low-profit enterprises” are entitled to a preferential rate of 20%. Beijing Huapin Borui Network Technology Co., Ltd., which we refer to as the VIE, was certified as a “high and new technology enterprise” and accordingly was eligible for a preferential tax rate of 15% in each of 2023, 2024 and 2025. The preferential tax treatment continues as long as an enterprise can retain its “high and new technology enterprise” status. Our WFOE was subject to an enterprise income tax rate of 25% in each of 2023 and 2024. In December 2025, our WFOE qualified as a “high and new technology enterprise” and became subject to an enterprise income tax rate of 15% for the year of 2025. If our company in the Cayman Islands or any of our subsidiaries outside of the Chinese mainland were deemed a “resident enterprise” under the PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law, it would be subject to enterprise income tax on its worldwide income at a rate of 25%. See “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Doing Business in China—If we are classified as a Chinese mainland resident enterprise for PRC income tax purposes, such classification could result in unfavorable tax consequences to us and our non- Chinese mainland shareholders or ADS holders.” We are subject to value-added tax at a rate of approximately 3% for small-scale-value-added-tax-payer entities or 6% for general-value-added-tax-payer entities on the services and solutions we provide to our customers, less any deductible value-added tax we have already paid or borne in accordance with laws of the Chinese mainland. We are also subject to surcharges on value-added tax payments in accordance with laws of the Chinese mainland. Pursuant to the PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law, a 5% or 10% withholding tax is levied on dividends declared to our intermediary holding company in Hong Kong from the Chinese mainland effective from January 1, 2008. See “Item 3. Key Information— D. Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Doing Business in China—We may not be able to obtain certain benefits on dividends paid by our subsidiaries in the Chinese mainland to us through our Hong Kong subsidiary.” The OECD introduced a framework for the implementation of a 15% global minimum tax (Pillar Two). Various OECD member countries have either enacted or are in the process of enacting Pillar Two legislation. This legislation has not yet enacted in the Chinese mainland while was enacted in Hong Kong and became effective for the year ended December 31, 2025. We will continue assessing the Pillar Two tax exposure and the impacts on our consolidated financial statements accordingly. B. Liquidity and Capital Resources As of December 31, 2025, our cash and cash equivalents, short-term time deposits and short-term investments totaled RMB19.9 billion (US$2.9 billion), with RMB4.6 billion (US$651.0 million) net cash provided by operating activities for 2025. We believe that our current cash balance will be sufficient to meet our current and anticipated working capital requirements and capital expenditures for at least the next twelve months. We may, however, need additional cash resources in the future if we experience changes in business conditions or other developments. We may also need additional cash resources in the future if we identify and wish to pursue opportunities for investment, acquisition, capital expenditure or similar actions. Although we consolidate the results of the VIE, we only have access to the assets or earnings of the VIE through our contractual arrangements with the VIE and its shareholders. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—C. Organizational Structure—Contractual Arrangements with the VIE and Its Shareholders.” For restrictions and limitations on liquidity and capital resources as a result of our corporate structure, see “—Holding Company Structure.” 121 Table of Contents As a Cayman Islands exempted company and offshore holding company, we are permitted under laws and regulations of the Chinese mainland to provide funding to our subsidiaries in the Chinese mainland only through loans or capital contributions, subject to the filing, approval or registration of government authorities and limits on the amount of loans. This may delay us from making loans or capital contributions to our subsidiaries in the Chinese mainland and the VIE. See “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Doing Business in China—PRC regulation of loans to and direct investment in entities in the Chinese mainland by offshore holding companies and governmental control of currency conversion may delay or prevent us from making loans or additional capital contributions to our subsidiaries in the Chinese mainland and the VIE, which could materially and adversely affect our liquidity and our ability to fund and expand our business.” The following table sets forth a summary of our cash flows for the periods presented: ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ For the Year Ended December 31, ​ ​ 2023 ​ 2024 ​ 2025 ​ ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ RMB ​ ​ ​ US$ ​ ​ (in thousands) Net cash provided by operating activities 3,047,009 3,542,495 4,552,371 650,980 Net cash used in investing activities (9,938,645) (2,016,899) (4,608,212) (658,966) Net cash (used in)/provided by financing activities (417,022) (1,460,539) 1,654,508 236,592 Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents 29,793 15,074 (46,840) (6,698) Net (decrease)/increase in cash and cash equivalents (7,278,865) 80,131 1,551,827 221,908 Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of the year 9,751,824 2,472,959 2,553,090 365,087 Cash and cash equivalents at end of the year 2,472,959 2,553,090 4,104,917 586,995 ​ Operating activities Net cash provided by operating activities in 2025 was RMB4.6 billion (US$651.0 million). The difference between this net cash provided by operating activities and net income of RMB2.7 billion (US$384.7 million) in the same period was due to adjustments for non-cash items that primarily include share-based compensation expenses of RMB912.0 million (US$130.4 million), depreciation expenses of property, equipment and software of RMB517.9 million (US$74.1 million), amortization expenses and impairment of intangible assets of RMB151.7 million (US$21.7 million), and amortization of right-of-use assets of RMB145.4 million (US$20.8 million), as well as cash released from a decrease in working capital mainly resulting from an increase of RMB151.1 million (US$21.6 million) in deferred revenue and an increase of RMB177.4 million (US$25.4 million) in other payables and accrued liabilities, partially offset by a decrease of RMB148.1 million (US$21.2 million) in operating lease liabilities. Net cash provided by operating activities in 2024 was RMB3.5 billion. The difference between this net cash provided by operating activities and net income of RMB1.6 billion in the same period was due to adjustments for non-cash items that primarily include share-based compensation expenses of RMB1.1 billion, depreciation and amortization expenses of long-lived assets of RMB501.9 million, and amortization of right-of-use assets of RMB184.6 million, as well as cash released from a decrease in working capital mainly resulting from an increase of RMB289.5 million in deferred revenue, a decrease of RMB133.8 million in prepayments and other current assets, partially offset by a decrease of RMB180.5 million in operating lease liabilities. Net cash provided by operating activities in 2023 was RMB3.0 billion. The difference between this net cash provided by operating activities and net income of RMB1.1 billion in the same period was due to adjustments for non-cash items that primarily include share-based compensation expenses of RMB1.1 billion, unrealized interest and investment income of RMB288.0 million, depreciation and amortization expenses of long-lived assets of RMB258.8 million, and amortization of right-of-use assets of RMB169.1 million, as well as cash released from a decrease in working capital mainly resulting from an increase of RMB733.2 million in deferred revenue, a decrease of RMB123.9 million in prepayments and other current assets, partially offset by a decrease of RMB170.8 million in operating lease liabilities. Investing activities Net cash used in investing activities in 2025 was RMB4.6 billion (US$659.0 million), primarily consisting of purchases of time deposits of RMB8.7 billion (US$1.2 billion), purchases of short-term and long-term investments of RMB20.4 billion (US$2.9 billion) and purchases of property, equipment and software of RMB119.1 million (US$17.0 million), partially offset by maturities of time deposits of RMB6.9 billion (US$984.7 million), maturities of short-term and long-term investments of RMB17.7 billion (US$2.5 billion) and disposal of property, equipment and software of RMB50.6 million (US$7.2 million). 122 Table of Contents Net cash used in investing activities in 2024 was RMB2.0 billion, primarily consisting of purchases of time deposits of RMB6.1 billion, purchases of short-term and long-term investments of RMB10.4 billion and purchases of property, equipment and software of RMB856.0 million, partially offset by maturities of time deposits of RMB7.6 billion and maturities of short-term and long-term investments of RMB7.9 billion. Net cash used in investing activities in 2023 was RMB9.9 billion, primarily consisting of purchases of time deposits of RMB9.7 billion, purchases of short-term and long-term investments of RMB9.6 billion and purchases of property, equipment and software of RMB955.5 million, partially offset by maturities of time deposits of RMB4.0 billion and maturities of short-term and long-term investments of RMB6.3 billion. Financing activities Net cash provided by financing activities in 2025 was RMB1.7 billion (US$236.6 million), primarily attributable to proceeds from the share offer of RMB2.0 billion (US$286.4 million) and proceeds from the exercise of share-based awards of RMB347.6 million (US$49.7 million), partially offset by proceeds from the payment of dividends of RMB553.0 million (US$79.1 million) and the repurchase of ordinary shares of RMB142.8 million (US$20.4 million). Net cash used in financing activities in 2024 was RMB1.5 billion, primarily attributable to the repurchase of ordinary shares of RMB1.7 billion, partially offset by proceeds from the exercise of share-based awards of RMB191.3 million. Net cash used in financing activities in 2023 was RMB417.0 million, primarily attributable to the payment of dividends of RMB562.9 million and the repurchase of ordinary shares of RMB71.8 million, partially offset by proceeds from the exercise of share-based awards of RMB217.7 million. Capital expenditures We incurred capital expenditures of RMB955.5 million, RMB856.0 million, and RMB119.1 million (US$17.0 million) in 2023, 2024 and 2025, respectively, which were primarily attributable to the purchases of servers and other electronic equipment. We may continue to incur capital expenditures in the future to meet our business growth. Material cash requirements Our material cash requirements as of December 31, 2025 primarily include operating lease obligations. Our operating lease obligations primarily represent our obligations under the lease agreements for our office premises. We intend to fund our existing and future material cash requirements primarily with our existing cash balance and anticipated cash flows from operations. The following table sets forth our contractual obligations as of December 31, 2025: ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Payment Due by Period ​ ​ ​ ​ Less than ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ More than ​ ​ Total ​ 1 year ​ ​ ​ 1–3 years ​ ​ ​ 3–5 years ​ ​ ​ 5 years ​ ​ (in RMB thousands) Operating lease obligations ​ 166,049 ​ 95,961 ​ 58,453 ​ 11,635 ​ — ​ We have not entered into any financial guarantees or other commitments to guarantee the payment obligations of any third parties. We do not have retained or contingent interests in assets transferred. We have not entered into contractual arrangements that support the credit, liquidity or market risk for transferred assets. We do not have obligations that arise or could arise from variable interests held in an unconsolidated entity, or obligations related to derivative instruments that are both indexed to and classified in our own equity, or not reflected in the statement of financial position. Except for those disclosed above, we did not have any significant capital or other commitments, long-term obligations, or guarantees as of December 31, 2025. 123 Table of Contents Holding Company Structure KANZHUN LIMITED is a holding company with no material operations of its own. We conduct our operations primarily through our subsidiaries in the Chinese mainland and the VIE in the Chinese mainland. As a result, KANZHUN LIMITED’s ability to pay dividends depends upon dividends paid by our subsidiaries in the Chinese mainland. If our existing subsidiaries in the Chinese mainland or any newly formed ones incur debt on their own behalf in the future, the instruments governing their debt may restrict their ability to pay dividends to us. In addition, our wholly foreign-owned subsidiaries in the Chinese mainland are permitted to pay dividends to us only out of its retained earnings, if any, as determined in accordance with PRC accounting standards and regulations. Under laws of the Chinese mainland, each of our subsidiaries in the Chinese mainland and the VIE and its subsidiaries is required to set aside at least 10% of its after-tax profits each year, after making up previous years’ accumulated losses, if any, to fund certain statutory reserve funds until such reserve funds reach 50% of their registered capital. In addition, our wholly foreign-owned subsidiaries in the Chinese mainland and the VIE and its subsidiaries may allocate a portion of its after-tax profits based on PRC accounting standards to a surplus fund at their discretion. The statutory reserve funds and the discretionary funds are not distributable as cash dividends. Remittance of dividends by a wholly foreign-owned company out of the Chinese mainland is subject to examination by the banks designated by the SAFE. Our subsidiaries in the Chinese mainland have not paid dividends and will not be able to pay dividends until they generate accumulated profits and meet the requirements for statutory reserve funds. C. Research and Development, Patents and Licenses, etc. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—B. Business Overview—Research and Technology,” and “Item 4. Information on the Company—B. Business Overview—Intellectual Properties.” D. Trend Information Other than as disclosed elsewhere in this annual report, we are not aware of any trends, uncertainties, demands, commitments or events for the period since January 1, 2026 that are reasonably likely to have a material and adverse effect on our net revenues, income, profitability, liquidity or capital resources, or that would cause the disclosed financial information to be not necessarily indicative of future results of operations or financial conditions. E. Critical Accounting Estimates Our consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP. The preparation of these financial statements requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues, costs and expenses, and related disclosures. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions believed to be applicable and reasonable under the circumstances. Actual results could differ from these estimates. These estimates may change as new events occur, as additional information is obtained and as our operating environment changes. On an on-going basis, we evaluate our estimates and may make changes accordingly. We consider an accounting estimate to be critical if: (i) the accounting estimate requires us to make assumptions about matters that were highly uncertain at the time the accounting estimate was made, and (ii) changes in the estimate that are reasonably likely to occur from period to period, or use of different estimates that we reasonably could have used in the current period, would have a material impact on our financial condition or results of operations. There are other items within our financial statements that require estimation but are not deemed critical, as defined above. Changes in estimates used in these and other items could have a material impact on our financial statements. For a detailed discussion of our critical accounting estimates and significant accounting policies, please see “Note 2—Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” of the consolidated financial statements included in this annual report. Fair value of share options We granted share options to our employees, directors and consultants. We used a binomial option pricing model to determine the fair value of the awarded share options, which is to be expensed over the vesting period. Significant estimates and assumptions, including fair value of ordinary shares on the grant date, risk-free interest rate, expected term, expected dividend yield, expected volatility and expected early exercise multiple are made. 124 Table of Contents Key assumptions are set forth as follows: ● Fair value of ordinary shares on the grant date—The fair value of the ordinary share prior to our initial public offering in the United States of America was estimated based on the following assumptions: ● Weighted average cost of capital, or WACC: The WACC was determined in consideration of factors including risk-free rate, comparative industry risk, equity risk premium, company size and non-systematic risk factors. ● Discount for lack of marketability, or DLOM: The DLOM was quantified by the protective put options mode. Under this option-pricing method, which assumed that the put option is struck at the price of the stock before the privately held shares can be sold, the cost of the put option was considered as a basis to determine the DLOM. ● Risk-free interest rate: The risk-free rate was estimated based on the market yield of U.S. Treasury with a maturity life that corresponds with the expected term. ● Expected term: Expected term is the contractual life of the options. ● Expected dividend yield: We have no history of paying cash dividends on our ordinary shares and do not expect to pay dividends in the foreseeable future. ● Expected volatility: Expected volatility was estimated based on the average volatility of comparable companies in the same industry. The volatility of each comparable company was based on the historical daily stock prices for a period with length commensurate to the remaining maturity life of the share options. ● Expected early exercise multiple: Expected early exercise multiple was estimated by reference to a widely accepted academic research publication. Business acquisitions We account for business acquisitions using the acquisition method of accounting in accordance with ASC 805, Business Combinations. The consideration transferred in an acquisition is measured as the aggregate of the fair value of the assets transferred, liabilities incurred and equity instruments issued as of the acquisition date. Identifiable assets and liabilities acquired or assumed are measured separately at their fair value as of the acquisition date. The excess of total consideration paid, fair value of any non-controlling interest and the acquisition-date fair value of any previously held equity interest in the subsidiary acquired over the fair value of the identifiable net assets acquired is recorded as goodwill. The application of the acquisition method of accounting requires making significant estimates and assumptions to determine the fair value of assets acquired and liabilities assumed as of the acquisition date, which include, but are not limited to, projected future revenues, forecasted cash flows and discount rates. These estimates and assumptions made are believed to be reasonable, but are inherently uncertain. Unanticipated events and circumstances may occur that could affect either the accuracy or validity of these estimates and assumptions, and actual results may differ from estimates. ​ 125 Table of Contents