South Korea’s second-largest city, Busan, is about to become a laboratory for a new kind of money. And the company running the experiment is Naver, a tech titan that is to Korea what Google is to the rest of us. It’s a quiet move with loud implications.
- Naver Financial is launching a wallet for a local stablecoin pegged to Busan’s regional currency, Dongbaek-jeon, in partnership with Hashed and the Busan Digital Asset Exchange. This stablecoin is designed specifically for local spending by residents and tourists alike.
- The existing Dongbaek-jeon system already boasts a large user base of 1.5 million monthly users, and Naver plans to integrate the new stablecoin wallet with its highly popular Naver Pay Wallet.
- This local currency project is seen as a strategic first step for Naver to establish infrastructure and gain regulatory trust ahead of potentially larger moves in the digital currency space.
Naver’s fintech division, Naver Financial, is rolling out a wallet for a local stablecoin. The project, developed with venture capital firm Hashed and the Busan Digital Asset Exchange, is reportedly in its final checks. The launch is slated for next month.
Think of it this way. You’re a tourist in Busan. You pull out your phone, and with a few taps, your dollars or yen become digital “Dongbaek-jeon,” the city’s regional currency. This isn’t some volatile token. It’s a stablecoin, pegged to the local currency, designed for one purpose: spending in Busan.
This isn’t a project starting from scratch. Dongbaek-jeon already exists. It operates like a local credit card, offering cashback to encourage residents to shop at local businesses. According to reports, it already has a monthly average of 1.5 million users. That’s a massive, built-in audience.
BNK Busan Bank, the current issuer, has been looking into shifting the system from prepaid points to a proper stablecoin. Now, with Naver’s muscle, that transition seems imminent. Naver plans to connect the new stablecoin wallet to its existing Naver Pay Wallet, one of the most popular payment apps in the country.
There is, of course, a catch. It’s the same one we see time and again in this industry. The technology is ready to go, but the rulebook isn’t written yet. The wallet’s full capabilities will likely stay locked until South Korea’s regulators establish a clear framework for local, currency-pegged stablecoins. Naver is building the car, but the government still has to pave the road.
This move is a calculated bet. Naver is planting its flag early, positioning itself as the go-to infrastructure provider for a future where cities, not just nations, might issue their own digital currency.
A Quiet Merger, A Loud Ambition
The Busan wallet is an interesting story on its own. But it becomes far more compelling when you zoom out. While Naver is tinkering with city-coins, it’s also reportedly orchestrating one of the biggest deals in Korean crypto history.
Local news reports claim Naver is in the process of merging with Dunamu. If that name doesn’t ring a bell, its main asset will: Upbit. Dunamu is the parent company of South Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchange.
The deal is structured as a stock-swap transaction. The reported endgame? Dunamu would become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Naver. Then, it would aim for a public listing on the Nasdaq. This isn’t just about dominating the Korean market. It’s about taking a Korean-born crypto giant onto the world’s biggest stage.
Let’s consider the sheer scale of this potential entity. Naver is already a behemoth. It reported revenues of 3.14 trillion Korean won, or about $2.32 billion, in the third quarter alone. Its operating profit was a cool $422.67 million.
Dunamu is no slouch either. It posted a 35% quarter-over-quarter revenue jump, bringing in $262.87 million in the third quarter. Its net profit soared by 145% in the same period, reaching $162.80 million. This is a company that knows how to make money in the crypto markets, bull or bear.
Combine these two. You get a company with the search, e-commerce, and payment reach of Naver fused with the crypto trading engine of Upbit. It creates a financial super-app with few rivals in Asia, or anywhere else for that matter.
The Busan stablecoin project suddenly looks less like a quaint local experiment and more like a strategic first step. It’s a proof-of-concept. Naver can use it to demonstrate to regulators and the public that it can handle digital currency responsibly, integrating it seamlessly into daily life.
If the Busan model works, what’s to stop a “Seoul-coin” or a “Daegu-coin” from following? Naver would be perfectly positioned to provide the wallet and payment rails for all of them.
The merger and the stablecoin wallet are two sides of the same coin. One is a quiet, ground-level play to win public trust. The other is a boardroom blockbuster aimed at global financial markets. Together, they paint a picture of a company that doesn’t just want to participate in the future of finance. It wants to build it.
