Korea's Biggest Fintech Company And Crypto Exchange Are Joining Forces

South Korea’s biggest crypto exchange is set to be folded into one of the nation’s most powerful tech and payments companies, in a multibillion-dollar merger that places stablecoins at the center of Korea’s next major fintech battleground.

Naver Financial has agreed to absorb Dunamu — the operator of Upbit — in an all-stock deal valued at $10.29 billion, according to a regulatory filing published Wednesday. Under the terms, Naver will issue 2.54 new shares for every Dunamu share, converting Dunamu equity into Naver stock as the crypto firm becomes a wholly owned subsidiary.

Despite being brought over, Dunamu’s leadership will join the Naver Financial board of directors as the largest shareholder of the new conglomarate.

Both entities have also revealed that they will continue to operate based on their existing business units, but the merger will open doors for deeper restructuring and joint development across payments, blockchain infrastructure and digital-asset services.

The agreement describes the combined group as exploring “future growth engines” through functional and technological integration — a move that mirrors the accelerating convergence of traditional finance and crypto across global markets.

Stablecoins Stays At The Center Of Korea’s New Fintech Arms Race

At the heart of the tie-up is a shared push into the stablecoin sector, now one of the fastest-growing segments of the digital-asset economy. Following the United States’ landmark legislation this year formally recognizing stablecoins as a regulated asset class, competition to launch fiat-backed tokens has intensified among global banks, fintech firms and crypto exchanges.

Dunamu previously announced plans for a Korean-won-denominated stablecoin to be issued through Naver, along with a specialized Ethereum layer-2 network designed to support high-throughput stablecoin transfers and retail payment activity.

For Naver — already the dominant force in Korea’s digital payments ecosystem — the merger provides direct access to blockchain infrastructure and Upbit’s liquidity engine, positioning the combined group as a potential leader in on-chain settlements.

Industry observers say the deal underscores a broader shift in South Korea: Web2 giants and Web3 platforms are beginning to merge at scale, competing to build super-apps where traditional payments, stablecoins, trading and digital identity coexist seamlessly.

The acquisition now moves to the Fair Trade Commission, which must approve the deal before Naver can finalize the takeover and begin implementing its stablecoin-focused roadmap.

If greenlit, the merger would create one of the most powerful digital-finance alliances in Asia — and could reshape how millions of Koreans move money across both Web2 and Web3 platforms.