What If: Naver Acquires Dunamu?

This report was written by Tiger Research, analyzing potential scenarios if Naver acquires Dunamu.

TL;DR

• The possibility of Naver acquiring Dunamu, Upbit’s operator, has emerged and drawn industry attention. This would be a big deal on the level of Google acquiring Coinbase.

• The synergy centers on three areas. Naver’s 40 million users could streamline Upbit registration. Stablecoins could boost Naver Commerce payment efficiency. Naver Webtoon IP could create new blockchain revenue models.

• Both companies denied the reports but already cooperate in stablecoins and other areas. They view crypto as core strategy. Integration will likely happen.

1. Massive Changes Are Coming to Korea’s Crypto Market

On September 25, 2025, speculation emerged that Dunamu, which operates Upbit (Korea’s largest crypto exchange), might join the Naver group. Dunamu would become a 100% subsidiary of Naver Financial, Naver’s financial subsidiary. This would create a vertical group structure.

 Source: Tiger Research

The two companies previously announced plans to cooperate in various areas, including stablecoin business. However, news of Naver acquiring Dunamu, which has a market cap of 12 trillion won, shocked the industry. This deal resembles a scenario where Google acquires Coinbase, the leading crypto exchange.

Both companies officially denied the reports. They stated “nothing has been confirmed yet.” However, the potential combination of these two giant companies deserves analysis. We should examine what changes this scenario might bring and its ripple effects. This analysis will explore what business areas could create synergy if the Naver-Dunamu big deal goes through.

2. What Synergy Effects Can Naver x Dunamu Create?

To understand the synergy effects between Naver and Dunamu, we need to first examine Naver’s corporate characteristics. Naver is Korea’s leading big tech company. It started with search engines and now operates across various industries. The company has built its own ecosystem spanning e-commerce (Naver Shopping), simple payment (Naver Pay), and content platforms (Naver Webtoon).

Source: Naver Integrated Report 2024

If Dunamu remained only a crypto exchange business, cooperation between the two companies would be limited. However, Dunamu recently announced GIWA Chain, an Optimism-based Layer 2 blockchain. This shows Dunamu is transforming from a simple exchange into a blockchain infrastructure company. Blockchain infrastructure can naturally integrate with various industries.

This is where Naver’s vast business domains connect with Dunamu’s infrastructure capabilities. This connection explains why their combination draws attention.

Scenario 1: User Base Expansion

The most obvious synergy between the two companies is user base expansion. Naver has approximately 40 million monthly active users (MAU). The company provides digital authentication infrastructure, including simple login services and mobile ID services (such as identification cards and driver’s licenses) within its app.

Source: Upbit

Currently, crypto exchange sign-up processes are quite complex. Users must go through multiple steps: identity verification, ID photo capture, and bank account linking. These cumbersome procedures act as major barriers for new user acquisition. However, the situation would change completely if Naver integrates with Upbit. Users could sign up and log in easily using their Naver IDs. The company could also significantly simplify the KYC (Know Your Customer) process by utilizing Naver’s mobile ID service.

These changes would directly impact Upbit’s user expansion. Upbit currently has 10 million cumulative registered users. When Naver’s 40 million user base combines with a simplified registration process, potential users can join much more easily. This represents a significant opportunity for Upbit to accelerate its user growth rate.

Scenario 2: Stablecoin Payment Revolution

Source: Naver Integrated Report 2024

The next area to focus on is stablecoins. Naver has officially announced its intention to enter the stablecoin market. The company will likely issue stablecoins centered around GIWA Chain. The key lies in Naver’s massive payment ecosystem. Naver Pay has 30.68 million users (as of 2025). Naver Shopping’s annual transaction volume reaches approximately 50.3 trillion won (as of 2024).

If stablecoins are introduced into this large-scale payment ecosystem, both companies can expect significant synergy effects. Naver can reduce existing credit card fees and improve profitability. The company can also greatly enhance settlement process efficiency. Additionally, 10 million crypto investors will likely flow into Naver Pay.

Dunamu can also secure substantial revenue opportunities. The company can capture blockchain fees generated on GIWA Chain. It can also secure transaction fees from stablecoin payment services. Stablecoins and cryptocurrencies haven’t yet become mainstream payment methods. Merchants need on/off-ramps when they receive stablecoins and convert them to cash. Exchange infrastructure is essential throughout this process. Upbit will likely serve this role (as of 2025, the Financial Services Commission allows crypto sales within licensed exchanges).

Naver Pay Connect, Source: Naver Pay

When Naver Pay and Upbit connect as one, they will gain completely different competitive advantages. Considering Naver’s recently launched offline payment terminal ‘Naver Pay Connect’, they can build an integrated ecosystem. This ecosystem would seamlessly connect all payments from online to offline through stablecoins. This would provide competitive advantages that differ significantly from existing payment ecosystems.

Scenario 3: Content IP Innovation

Source: Naver Webtoon

The final point to focus on is the potential integration between Naver’s content ecosystem and blockchain. Naver Webtoon has produced numerous popular webtoons including Tower of God, Sweet Home, and Vigilante. These works have been adapted into dramas and movies, securing global fandoms. Naver Webtoon’s revenue reached approximately $1.35 billion in 2024 and continues to grow.

Source: Naver Integrated Report 2024

Naver Webtoon basically allows creators to own their IP, but the platform holds usage rights or exclusive rights depending on contract terms. If Dunamu’s GIWA Chain integrates with this structure, it can increase IP utilization transparency and innovate secondary creation and revenue distribution models. Furthermore, new models become possible, such as fan community-based token economies and on-chain IP assets.

Source: Naver Webtoon

Naver Webtoon is also expanding collaborations with global IP companies like Disney and Marvel recently. Disney provides IP while Naver Webtoon handles platform development and operation. The new platform will gather Disney’s vast comic IP collection in one place. This means Naver Webtoon has secured a foundation to handle not only its own IP but also global mega IPs. Through this, the content industry’s monetization methods are expected to take a leap forward by combining with blockchain.

3. Blockchain Expands Naver’s Business Reach

Naver’s platform ecosystem extends far beyond what we’ve covered here. Various scenarios exist where blockchain technology can integrate with Naver’s existing value chain to add new functions and value, or expand into completely different areas.

For example, Poshmark, North America’s largest secondhand trading platform that Naver acquired in 2023, could implement an escrow system using stablecoin’s programmable payment features. Naver’s search advertising business could increase transparency through blockchain-based settlements. The live streaming service Chzzk could experiment with models that convert viewer participation into token rewards.

 Source: Securities Plus Unlisted

One particularly notable point is that Naver Pay acquired unlisted stock trading platform “Securities Plus Unlisted.” Combined with Dunamu’s GIWA Chain, this opens realistic scenarios for dramatically improving liquidity and accessibility through tokenization of unlisted stocks.

Naver and Dunamu draw the line regarding subsidiary integration, but they are already cooperating in various areas. The important point is that both companies now recognize the crypto industry as a strategic core pillar and have begun full-scale participation. The industry closely watches how their combination will materialize and what new blockchain services will emerge in the process.

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