Naver headquarters [Naver]
Naver headquarters [Naver]

Naver has decided against acquiring a stake in Baemin, the online food delivery platform.

In a regulatory filing Thursday, Naver said it had reviewed the possibility of acquiring a stake in Baemin but decided not to proceed "due to changes in the business environment and other factors."

Earlier, Naver had reportedly joined a consortium with Uber to participate in a preliminary bid for Baemin.

The situation shifted dramatically, however, after Uber announced its intention to acquire Delivery Hero — the parent company of Baemin operator Woowa Brothers — for approximately $13.7 billion. Under that deal, Delivery Hero would become a subsidiary of Uber and Woowa Brothers a second-tier subsidiary.

At the time, Uber Chief Executive Dara Khosrowshahi said the integration of the Uber and Delivery Hero platforms would bring delivery services to hundreds of millions of people worldwide. He added that the company would double the number of markets where it offers mobility and delivery services and expand its proven platform to create value for both customers and shareholders.


ko@heraldcorp.com