Naver CEO is making a keynote speech (Image from Naver)
SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Korea Bizwire) — Naver, South Korea’s internet giant, is on the verge of surpassing an annual revenue of 10 trillion won ($6.8 billion) for the first time, driven by its aggressive expansion into new business sectors.
According to industry sources, Naver’s revenue from new ventures—including e-commerce, fintech, content, and cloud services—accounted for more than 60% of its total earnings in 2024, marking a significant shift from its traditional search platform dominance.
Market projections compiled by Yonhap Infomax estimate that Naver’s total revenue for 2024 will reach 10.65 trillion won, making it the first domestic internet platform company to cross the 10-trillion-won threshold. The data suggests that new business lines contributed at least 6 trillion won to last year’s revenue.
Since the second quarter of 2021, Naver’s revenue from emerging business segments has consistently exceeded 50% of its total earnings. In the third quarter of 2024 alone, these sectors generated 1.72 trillion won, or 63% of the company’s total revenue of 2.72 trillion won.
Naver has strategically restructured its business divisions since 2020, classifying operations into five core segments: Search Platform, Commerce, Fintech, Content, and Cloud. Previously, the company grouped its revenue streams under categories like advertising, business platform, IT platform, and content services.
The reorganization underscores Naver’s intensified focus on e-commerce, fintech, and digital content as growth drivers.
Naver Corp.’s headquarters in Seongnam, south of Seoul (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
This rapid transformation has fueled Naver’s ascent. The company first surpassed 5 trillion won in revenue in 2018, and within six years, it has doubled that figure. By Naver’s classification, its search platform remains distinct, while all other segments fall under its new business portfolio.
Central to Naver’s expansion strategy is artificial intelligence (AI). The company has been investing heavily in its proprietary large language model (LLM), HyperCLOVA X, while simultaneously diversifying its business portfolio, particularly in commerce.
As a result, Naver’s 2024 financials are expected to reflect balanced growth across its key sectors, with projected year-over-year increases of 11% in search platform revenue, 12% in commerce, 13% in fintech, 6.4% in content, and 17% in cloud services.
Over the years, Naver has consistently reinvested more than 25% of its revenue into future technologies, committing approximately 16 trillion won to research and development (R&D) from 2012 to 2023.
In 2025, the company plans to integrate HyperCLOVA X into its search services, launching an AI-driven briefing function. Additionally, it will spin off its commerce business into a standalone app, ‘Naver Plus Store,’ further solidifying its foothold in online retail.
Naver Corp. CEO Choi Soo-yeon speaks at Naver’s tech conference, DAN24, held in Seoul on Nov. 11, 2024, in this photo provided by the company. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
Beyond domestic initiatives, Naver has been making strides in global markets. Following its successful bid for a digital twin platform project in Saudi Arabia in 2023, the company is accelerating international expansion through an ‘AI Everywhere’ strategy—embedding AI across its core services, including search, advertising, shopping, and location-based offerings.
With its imminent milestone of 10 trillion won in revenue, Naver is poised to become the eighth South Korean company to reach this benchmark within 25 years of its founding. Preceding companies include Samsung Electronics (25 years), SK Telecom (19 years), SK Hynix (17 years), KT (17 years), LG Uplus (16 years), Hyundai Glovis (11 years), and Coupang (10 years).
Naver’s financial trajectory underscores its resilience and adaptability. Having first surpassed 1 trillion won in annual revenue in 2008, the company continued its rapid growth, reaching 2 trillion won in 2011, 3 trillion won in 2015, 4 trillion won in 2016, and 5 trillion won in 2018.
Meanwhile, its operating profit margin remains robust—estimated at 18% in 2024, a notable increase from 15.4% in 2023. This far surpasses the typical 5-8% margin seen in manufacturing conglomerates and even outperforms the 10% average for financial firms.
As Naver advances into 2025, its strategic focus on AI innovation and business diversification positions it as a formidable player in the evolving digital economy, both at home and abroad.
Kevin Lee (kevinlee@koreabizwire.com)
