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NAVER posts record high operating revenue of KRW 1.9 T and operating profit of KRW 351.2 B in 4Q21 earnings results

 

- All business segments maintained a high growth rate with quarterly revenue rising by 27.4% YoY

- Annual operating revenue rose 28.5% YoY to KRW 6.8 trillion and annual adjusted EBITDA increased 22.2% YoY to KRW 1.9 trillion

 

2022. 01. 27

 

NAVER Corporation (KRX: 035420) announced today its earnings for the fourth quarter of 2021 with KRW 1.9 trillion revenue (approx. USD 1.6 billion), KRW 351.2 billion operating income (approx. USD 293 million) and KRW 483.5 billion adjusted EBITDA (approx. USD 404 million).

 

NAVER’s quarterly consolidated operating revenue reached a record high as it rose 27.4% YoY and 11.6% QoQ. Quarterly consolidated operating income also reached its highest level, increasing by 8.5% YoY and 0.4% QoQ.

 

In 2021, NAVER’s annual operating revenue rose 28.5% YoY to KRW 6.8 trillion (approx. USD 5.6 billion) while annual operating income grew 9.1% to KRW 1.3 trillion (approx. USD 1.1 billion). Annual adjusted EBITDA, following the Korean International Financial Reporting Standards (K-IFRS), rose 22.2% YoY to KRW 1.9 trillion (approx. USD 1.6 billion).

 

By business segment, NAVER’s operating revenue in Q4 from its search platform was KRW 886.9 billion (approx. USD 741 million), commerce was KRW 405.2 billion (approx. USD 338 million), fintech was KRW 295.2 billion (approx. USD 247 million), content was KRW 233.3 billion (approx. USD 195 million), and cloud was KRW 107.2 billion (approx. USD 90 million).

 

NAVER’s search platform business revenue grew 15.2% YoY and 7.5% QoQ to KRW 886.9 billion due to the improved search quality and expansion of NAVER Smart Place*. Revenue from display within search platform increased 26.1% YoY, maintaining the high growth from previous quarters.

* NAVER Smart Place is an integrated online marketing and business solution platform that supports the digital transformation of 2 million registered offline SMEs.

 

NAVER’s commerce business revenue rose 27.9% YoY and 6.6% QoQ to KRW 405.2 billion on the back of growth in new commerce verticals such as NAVER Brand Store** and Shopping Live (live streaming commerce). Shopping Live’s Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) grew 4.7 times YoY, and the number of streaming shows that generated more than KRW 100 million (approx. USD 84,000) in GMV during Q4, also increased 39% QoQ. In its first full year of service, Brand Store and Shopping Live accounted for over 10% of the total Smart Store GMV in 2021.

** NAVER Brand Store is an online commerce platform for brands with integrated marketing, commerce, and business solutions.

 

During Q4, NAVER’s fintech business reported revenue of KRW 295.2 billion, up 46.8% YoY and 22.1% QoQ. NAVER Pay’s Total Payment Value (TPV) recorded KRW 10.9 trillion (approx. USD 9.1 billion) as the number of the new global partners increased.

 

NAVER’s content business revenue in Q4 rose 67.9% YoY and 26.7% QoQ to 233.3 billion, due to the growth of WEBTOON in the global market, which exceeded KRW 1 trillion (approx. USD 835 million) in annual GMV, and the accelerated growth of camera app SNOW and metaverse platform ZEPETO.

 

NAVER’s cloud business revenue in the fourth quarter rose 25.2% YoY and 11.4% QoQ to KRW 107.2 billion, due to new orders from major clients.

 

“NAVER has established a successful business model across the ecosystem along with global growth balancing technology investment and sustainable monetization which also benefits our diverse partners including the SMEs.” said Seong-sook Han, CEO of NAVER. “We ask for unwavering support to NAVER’s global growth story under the incoming leadership.”

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[Table] NAVER’s 4^th quarter and FY2021 Earnings Result

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* EBITDA + Stock-based compensation

NAVER’s 2021 4^th quarter earnings report is based on the consolidated financial statements

of the Korean International Financial Reporting Standards (K-IFRS)