Many technology companies are expanding their reach into the Web3 market, integrating blockchain and Web3 technologies into their products and services. In the latest move, South Korean internet giant Naver has released Naver Pay Wallet, the first digital asset wallet for the South Korean market. The company has partnered with Chiliz, a blockchain provider for sports and entertainment, as the first blockchain for the wallet.
Naver Pay is Naver's mobile payment service. The company offers a non-custodial wallet with its new cryptocurrency wallet, Naver Pay Wallet, giving users direct control over their private keys and digital assets.
“Naver Pay Wallet is not aiming to be a typical cryptocurrency wallet, but rather a service centered around utility and loyalty blockchain technology,” Alexandre Dreyfus, founder and CEO of Chiliz, said in an interview with TechCrunch.
In South Korea, more than 97,000 online and offline merchants use Naver Pay, a payment service that launched on Naver's e-commerce platform, Naver Shopping. The digital asset wallet serves as a valuable testing ground for Naver's merchant loyalty program, which leverages Chiliz blockchain technology, Dreyfus told TechCrunch.
Naver's digital asset wallet is in beta and allows its 33 million users to manage their digital assets and store NFTs, with other features to be added in the future, including integration with decentralized apps, fan tokens, and a loyalty program for Naver's merchant network, Dreyfus noted.
“The target customers are tech-savvy Koreans who already use Naver Pay for digital transactions and are interested in exploring blockchain technology, especially in the areas of sports, entertainment and digital assets,” Dreyfuss said.
Naver Pay CEO Park Sang-jin (left) and Chiliz CEO Alexandre Dreyfus (right) Image courtesy of Naver
Naver PayWallet can compete with other Korean digital payment platforms that are exploring blockchain integration. Still, Naver's massive user base puts it in a strong position to dominate the market and become Korea's “Google Pay/Apple Pay,” Dreyfuss explained. Its user-friendly platform will lower the barrier to entry for blockchain technology and accelerate mainstream adoption, he added.
The wallet will support Chiliz Chain as its first blockchain. Dreyfuss noted that the strategic partnership between Naver and Chiliz does not include a direct investment. Naver may add support for more blockchains in future updates to the Naver Pay wallet.