[비즈한국] Naver035420 Financial (Naver Pay) has partnered with financial authorities to build a venture capital platform designed to revitalize investments in ventures and startups. The project, which functions as a public service, has Naver Pay covering all development and operating costs. Industry observers are paying close attention to the fact that Naver Pay, which is currently undergoing various licensing and approval procedures related to its acquisition of Dunamu, is actively aligning itself with the government's policy direction.
On June 11, the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) and Naver Pay introduced the venture capital platform currently under development to relevant organizations, including the Korea Financial Investment Association, the Korea Venture Capital Association, and the Korea Venture Business Association, as well as comprehensive financial investment firms and venture companies. Venture capital refers to funds supplied in the form of investments or loans to companies that have high potential but are difficult to fund through general financial channels due to high uncertainty.
Naver Pay plans to demonstrate the platform's key features at the Korea Financial Investment Association on the 11th and complete development by incorporating industry feedback. The FSS stated, "We plan to host a launch ceremony for the venture capital platform in July once development is finalized based on the discussions from the meeting," adding, "We will operate it on a trial basis for 3 months and make immediate improvements on any issues identified."
The FSS and Naver Pay have been discussing the development of this venture capital platform since July 2025. Development was led by Naver Pay. Last May, they held working-level meetings with various stakeholders, including the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, the Venture Business Association, venture firms, the Korea Financial Investment Association, and securities firms, to discuss prototype testing, supplementary requirements, and operational methods.
According to the FSS, the platform will operate as a closed system, inaccessible to individuals or general companies. Access will require qualification verification, such as holding a VC license. An FSS official explained, "Since venture and SME business items will be posted on the platform, we will prioritize transparency toward institutions with internal controls in place, considering the risks of leaks," adding, "We aim to strike an appropriate balance between maintaining security and disclosing information for fundraising within the platform."
The core functions of the venture capital platform include providing investment information, connecting investors with innovative companies, and managing integrated portfolios. Securities firms, VCs, and SMEs/ventures can directly upload investment information to the platform, making it easy to access. Investors can look for company and fund information or check the status of their investments, while innovative companies can use the IR drafting tools provided by the platform to create materials or post company information at any time.
What stands out is that this venture capital platform is a public service project where Naver Pay bears the costs and manages both development and operations. Investors and innovative companies can use it for free after its launch. The platform will be operated as a separate site, distinct from Naver Pay's existing platform. Hwang Seon-o, Deputy Governor of the FSS, remarked, "I express my gratitude to Naver Pay for their dedication to development for the public good, despite being a private company," and added, "We will provide full support to ensure the platform can operate effectively in the market."
Naver Pay stated, "It is meaningful to contribute to creating an investment environment for the revitalization of venture capital. We will continue to supplement and enhance platform functions so that they provide practical help to the industry," adding, "We will do our best to increase the platform's completeness and ensure its successful settlement by actively reflecting the various opinions that emerge during the trial operation process."
The government is implementing various policies to steer capital in the financial market away from real estate and into venture capital. The venture capital platform is one such measure to guide funding. As information asymmetry in the market caused comprehensive financial investment firms—which have obligations to supply venture capital—to struggle with finding investment targets, the authorities set out to build a private platform where suppliers (investors) and demanders (innovative companies) can exchange information.
In December 2025, financial authorities amended the Financial Investment Business Regulations to tighten real estate investment rules and lowered recognition limits to prevent venture capital supply obligations from being skewed toward low-risk investments. Last May, they held a consultative body to discuss ways to strengthen the venture capital capabilities of the financial investment industry. The Financial Services Commission (FSC) also revamped the specialized securities firm system for SMEs to foster small and medium-sized securities firms and facilitate funding for SMEs.
Meanwhile, attention is also focused on Naver Pay's move to participate in a non-profitable government project. Naver has been aligning with the current government's policies, such as building AI infrastructure. Many figures from Naver have been appointed to major government positions. Han Seong-sook, the Minister of SMEs and Startups who was recently nominated as a candidate for Prime Minister, served as the CEO of Naver. The newly created position of Senior Secretary to the President for AI Future Planning in the Lee Jae-myung administration was filled by Ha Jung-woo, former head of the Naver Cloud AI Lab. Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Choi Hwi-young is also a former head of the planning office at NHN Naver Headquarters.
The fact that Naver Pay is going through government licensing and approval procedures for its acquisition of Dunamu is also a critical factor. While both companies completed board resolutions in November 2025, the Fair Trade Commission's merger review results have not yet been released. There are other reviews pending, making it difficult for the company to go against the government's grain. As a MyData business operator, Naver Pay must receive approval for changes in major shareholders and concurrent business reports under the Credit Information Use and Protection Act (Credit Information Act).
Additionally, the company must also obtain approval for the change of a major shareholder for its virtual asset business under the Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information (Special Financial Transaction Act), and with the amendment to the act coming into effect on August 20, the review process has become much stricter. As the licensing process has been prolonged, Naver Pay has extended the expected date for the stock swap/transfer from June 30 to September 30.