Namseon Kim, Chief Financial Officer (left), and Suyeon Choi, CEO, are holding a meeting on the morning of the 13th at Naver's second building, 1784.
[Asia Economy Reporter Seungjin Lee] On the 13th, Naver announced its global business direction at its second headquarters '1784', revealing plans for domestic stock price recovery and subsidiary listings. CEO Choi Soo-yeon and CFO Kim Nam-sun expressed confidence in Naver's growth potential under a long-term strategy rather than short-sighted plans.
CFO Kim said, "There seem to be only about two companies worldwide, including Amazon, that have doubled their sales every five years over the past 20 years, and Naver has grown like that on its own strength," adding, "Although Line was a significant growth driver, even excluding Line, Naver doubled its sales every four or five years."
He continued, "When asked about Naver's target stock price, at one point Naver's market capitalization was 75 trillion won, with a market value to sales ratio of 10 or 11 times," and said, "Doubling sales within five years to reach a market capitalization of 150 trillion won is not just a goal but a reality that must be achieved."
Regarding the direction for stock price recovery, CFO Kim stated, "Looking at global internet platform companies, most have fallen 50-60% from their peak, and companies with solid business strategies like Google and Amazon have seen relatively smaller declines," diagnosing that "platforms that have grown through marketing power have relied on excessive spending and are already in a situation of weakened profitability."
He added, "Naver shows a pattern similar to the top group with smaller stock price declines," and expressed confidence, saying, "We have grown by our intrinsic strength rather than marketing, continuously maintaining profit margins, and as we recover past performance, the stock price will return. We believe in the overall strength of 'Team Naver.'"
CEO Choi pointed to focusing on long-term performance as a strategy for stock price recovery. He emphasized, "We will maximize synergy with various businesses," and said, "If we achieve our global user targets, we will be on par with global IT companies." On this day, CEO Choi set a goal of 1 billion global users and 15 trillion won in sales within the next five years.
He also mentioned listing strategies for Naver Financial and Webtoon.
CFO Kim said, "No top executive can definitively say whether we will list or not," and evaluated, "Recently, subsidiary listings have spread like a trend, and many have regarded listing as the ultimate goal of growth strategy."
He added, "If subsidiary listings can provide growth and value to the parent company's shareholders and members, we will also have to carefully consider it," and said, "Naver has never set short-sighted goals; our top priority is to return maximum value to the parent company's shareholders, employees, and users, and we will focus fully on our core strategy."
Meanwhile, CEO Choi declared Naver's 'Global 3.0'. In the Global 3.0 phase, Team Naver's multiple synergy fields will expand globally across various sectors. The unique business models built by Team Naver will be adapted optimally for ▲Japan ▲North America ▲Europe, and Naver's advanced technological competitiveness that enables this will accelerate global growth.
CEO Choi said, "We have now entered 'Global 3.0,' creating multiple growth through diverse business portfolios, technological leadership, and domestic and international partnership synergies," adding, "'Team Naver,' which grows through collaboration with partners rather than a single business, will create a new global business ecosystem not only in Korea but also in Japan, North America, and Europe, aiming to achieve 1 billion users and 15 trillion won in sales within five years."
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