Upbit Owner Dunamu Plans Nasdaq IPO After Naver Merger

Dunamu, parent of South Korea's dominant cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, plans to pursue a Nasdaq IPO following its merger with tech giant Naver, the Seoul Economic Daily reported Monday.

Both companies will hold board meetings Wednesday to vote on the merger, with executives set to announce details Thursday if approved, according to The Chosun Daily. The deal involves Naver Financial acquiring Dunamu through a share exchange, which was reported in September.

Upbit processed $2.1 billion in trading volume over the past 24 hours, according to CoinGecko, making it one of Asia's most active crypto platforms. A U.S. listing would give Wall Street investors exposure to South Korea's crypto market, which often trades independently of Western markets.

Naver, which operates the country's leading search engine and digital services including payments, also plans to launch a won-backed stablecoin as South Korean regulators develop a framework for local currency digital assets.

Korean authorities must approve the merger and assess potential monopoly concerns from combining the nation's top crypto exchange with a major payments provider. The transaction was first reported in September.

The planned IPO follows several crypto company listings in the U.S. this year, including exchanges Gemini, Bullish and eToro, as well as stablecoin issuer Circle, which debuted in June at an $18 billion valuation.

Dunamu has not disclosed IPO timing or valuation targets.