Dunamu-Naver Financial share swap pushed to next year

The timeline for the merger between Naver Financial and Dunamu has been pushed back again. A comprehensive share exchange originally scheduled for the end of this year will now take place by the end of March next year, pushing the deal into 2027.

Naver Financial and Dunamu filed an amended disclosure Wednesday, moving the share exchange date from Dec. 31 this year to March 31 next year. The shareholder meeting to approve the share exchange agreement was also rescheduled, from Nov. 19 to Feb. 26 next year.

The two companies had already pushed back the exchange once before, shifting the original Sept. 30 deadline to Dec. 31 in July.

The structure and ratio of the share exchange remain unchanged. Under the deal, each Dunamu share will be exchanged for 2.5422618 Naver Financial shares, at a per-share exchange price of 439,252 won ($327) for Dunamu and 172,780 won for Naver Financial. Once the exchange is complete, Naver Financial will become the sole parent company and Dunamu will be incorporated as a wholly owned subsidiary.

A Naver Financial official said the amended filing was intended "to secure sufficient time to close the transaction in a stable manner," adding that "both companies are faithfully explaining the purpose of the deal, which is to build competitiveness in the global digital finance market."

A Dunamu official said the company is "cooperating with Naver Financial and the relevant authorities in their review and related procedures, submitting required materials and explaining the necessity of the transaction," and that "the basic structure and direction of the deal have not changed — we intend to faithfully carry out the review and all procedures required to close it."