The appearance of Naver's headquarters in Bundang-gu, Seongnam City. /Courtesy of News1

BlackRock, a global asset management firm and the second-largest stakeholder in Naver, has increased its stake in Naver, raising its equity stake to 6.05%.

According to the Financial Supervisory Service's electronic disclosure system on the 12th, Naver disclosed that BlackRock's equity stake had increased from 5.03% on the previous reporting date, September 8, 2016, to 6.05% as of December 11, 2024. The number of Naver shares held by BlackRock has risen to 9,592,734 shares. Based on Naver's closing price of 202,000 won on the 10th, this amounts to approximately 1.9377 trillion won.

BlackRock explained the increase in its equity stake in Naver as a "purchase of the company's shares on the market for simple investment purposes." Naver's largest shareholder is the National Pension Service, which holds 8.24% of the company's shares.

Meanwhile, BlackRock has invested $50 million in Webtoon Entertainment, the parent company of Naver Webtoon, which was listed on the Nasdaq last year.