Naver Financial gets 800 billion won investment from Mirae Asset

Korea’s leading portal operator Naver said Friday that its financial arm, Naver Financial, has attracted investment worth about 800 billion won ($683 million) from Mirae Asset Financial Group.

Naver Financial is set to issue 428,571 new shares next month for Mirae Asset Daewoo, the nation’s largest brokerage, and three other affiliates of Mirae Asset Financial Group.

Naver Financial, set up in November by Naver, will sell financial products in collaboration with financial companies next year.

The deal could further fuel competition in the growing fintech sector in Korea.

Korea has said it plans to set up a fund of 300 billion won to help fintech start-ups become unicorns, new enterprises with a valuation of more than $1 billion.

Since last year, fintech firms have been able to develop services without regulatory hurdles.

Under a so-called regulatory sandbox, fintech firms using new technologies, such as blockchain and big data, are exempted from strict regulation.

Yonhap