Lee Haejin Meets with Saudi Minister
Discusses Cooperation on Key Infrastructure
Including Digital Currency and Data Centers
CEO Choi Sooyoun Also Visits Saudi Arabia
Lee Haejin, Chairman of Naver (left), is taking a commemorative photo with Majid Al-Hogail, Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs and Housing of Saudi Arabia, on the 18th (local time). Photo by Saudi Press Agency (SPA)
Naver is accelerating its cooperation in the 'digital economy' in the Middle East. Lee Haejin, Chairman of Naver, visited Saudi Arabia in person and met with Majid Al-Hogail, Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs and Housing, to discuss collaboration on key infrastructure such as digital currency, digital twin, and data centers. Choi Sooyoun, CEO of Naver, also joined President Lee Jaemyung's economic delegation during his state visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) this week, signaling that Naver's Middle East strategy is expanding in all directions alongside the government's diplomatic and corporate investment initiatives.
According to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), the country's national news agency, Minister Al-Hogail met with Chairman Lee Haejin at the 'Cityscape Global Expo 2025' held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on the 18th (local time). During the meeting, both sides discussed new opportunities for cooperation, including expanding collaboration on real estate investment and stable digital currency, as well as jointly pursuing data center development projects. They also reviewed ways to expand research and development (R&D) cooperation in emerging technology fields and to support science and technology exchange programs between Korea and Saudi Arabia.
Naver is already supplying a digital twin platform to certain areas of Saudi Arabia's smart city projects. Based on 3D mapping and simulation, Naver has built large-scale urban management technologies for city planning and facility monitoring, which are being used as a core foundation for the Saudi government's smart city strategy. With the addition of a stablecoin-based ecosystem and large-scale data centers-key digital infrastructure being promoted by the Saudi government-the scope of cooperation is expanding from 'urban management' to include 'financial, data, and AI infrastructure.'
Naver CEO Choi Sooyoun also participated in the Korea-UAE Business Roundtable (BRT) as part of President Lee Jaemyung's state visit economic delegation to the UAE this week. After her visit to the UAE, CEO Choi continued her schedule in Saudi Arabia, further expanding Naver's presence throughout the Middle East.
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