Crypto▲ Bullish
Naver's $745M buyback doubles down on Dunamu crypto merger
Naver's $745M buyback, double last year's program, signals undervaluation as the company pursues a $10B all-stock merger with Dunamu, operator of Upbit. The deal's regulatory deadline was pushed to Dec. 2026.
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Naver Corp. is preparing to buy back roughly 1 trillion won ($745 million) in treasury stock, more than double the size of its 2024 program. The buyback signals management sees the stock as undervalued, and it comes as the company pursues one of the most ambitious fintech pivots in Asian tech history – one that runs directly through crypto infrastructure.
Naver CEO Choi Soo-yeon has been buying shares with personal money, purchasing 700 million won worth. Insider purchases at that level tend to attract attention.
The bigger story is the Dunamu merger. Naver Financial, a subsidiary, plans to absorb Dunamu, the operator of Upbit, South Korea's dominant cryptocurrency exchange. The all-stock integration is valued at about 15.1 trillion won ($10 billion), with a swap ratio of roughly 1:2.54. Regulators pushed the completion deadline to Dec. 31, 2026, after it was initially expected to close by 2025.
South Korea has been tightening its crypto regulatory regime, and a deal of this magnitude inevitably draws scrutiny. The extended timeline suggests regulators are working through the implications of a major tech conglomerate absorbing one of the country's largest crypto platforms.