Korea’s Naver Expands Saudi Footprint, Eyes Stablecoins and Smart City Tech

TLDRs;

• Naver expands AI and smart city operations in Saudi Arabia while pursuing stablecoin innovation through a fintech realignment.
• Talks with Saudi ministers include digital finance, data centers, and advanced AI infrastructure for urban development.
• Stablecoin ambitions face uncertainty due to Saudi Arabia’s ongoing ban on public cryptocurrency usage.
• Smart city demand and SEZ incentives boost opportunities for data center operators and AI infrastructure firms.

Korea’s tech powerhouse Naver is strengthening its presence in Saudi Arabia with a renewed push into artificial intelligence, smart city technologies, and digital finance infrastructure.

The latest engagements mark a significant evolution beyond the company’s earlier digital twin deployments in Mecca, Medina, and Jeddah, signaling broader ambitions in the Kingdom’s rapidly transforming digital economy.

Chairman Lee Hae-jin met with Majed Al-Hogail, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs and Housing, during Cityscape Global 2025 in Riyadh. Their discussions centered on expanding collaboration into advanced AI-based urban systems, next-generation data centers, and financial technologies that could support the Kingdom’s infrastructure goals.

Stablecoin Collaboration Explored

Among the most notable developments is Naver’s interest in entering the stablecoin sector, a move enabled by a planned stock swap between Naver Financial and Dunamu, the operator of South Korea’s largest crypto exchange.

The potential partnership would allow Naver to leverage Dunamu’s blockchain expertise as it explores digital currencies pegged to fiat, which could be applied to real estate transactions, cross-border payments, and smart city financial rails.

Saudi officials and Naver also explored real estate tokenization potentially offering new liquidity mechanisms for the Kingdom’s large-scale housing and urban development projects.

However, the opportunity is not without hurdles. While Saudi Arabia has shown increasing interest in blockchain, especially through pilot CBDC projects like Project Aber, cryptocurrencies remain illegal in the Kingdom. The Saudi Central Bank and government committees have reaffirmed a nationwide prohibition on unlicensed crypto activities since 2018. This regulatory gap suggests Naver may need special permissions, exemptions, or SEZ-specific licenses to deploy any stablecoin or tokenization products.

AI Infrastructure Takes Center Stage

Another priority emerging from the meeting is the expansion of AI and data infrastructure across Saudi Arabia. Demand for compute power has surged as the country accelerates investments in smart mobility, digital healthcare, AI-driven governance, and large-scale simulation models.

Saudi Arabia has already outlined an $18 billion initiative to build a network of hyperscale data centers. These facilities are critical for powering the smart city platforms Naver specializes in, and also present opportunities for regional and global infrastructure providers. The Cloud Computing Special Economic Zone (SEZ) offers incentives such as corporate tax rates as low as 5%, making the Kingdom’s infrastructure buildout attractive for foreign technology firms.

For Naver, expanding its AI footprint aligns with its long-term strategy of exporting Korean-developed digital ecosystems and cloning its own “ARC” to overseas markets. Saudi Arabia’s urban development megaprojects present an ideal stage for deployment.

Joint Ventures Strengthen Local Position

Naver already operates a joint venture with Saudi Arabia’s National Housing Company to scale digital platforms, urban analytics, and smart housing solutions. This partnership is expected to deepen as the company broadens its offerings beyond visualization tools to include autonomous operation systems, digital identity layers, and AI-managed infrastructure.

By integrating fintech, data centers, and AI-driven urban management, Naver is positioning itself as a full-stack digital partner for the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 transformation.

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