Naver Acquires Wallapop for €377M in Major C2C Deal

Seoul, South Korea - Naver Corp said on Tuesday it will acquire an additional 70.5 percent stake in Spanish consumer-to-consumer platform Wallapop for EUR 377 million.

The transaction will give Naver majority ownership of the Spanish marketplace, which the company said has more than 19 million monthly active users.

Naver previously held a 29.5 percent stake in Wallapop through investments of EUR 115 million in 2021 and EUR 75 million in 2023.

Wallapop operates a mobile platform for peer-to-peer transactions across categories including household items, electronics, and automobiles.

The platform operates in Spain, Italy, and Portugal. The company was founded in 2013 and has been led by Chief Executive Rob Cassedy since 2018.

Naver stated it plans to apply its search, advertising, payment, and artificial intelligence technologies to Wallapop's operations.

The South Korean company has conducted European investments through Korelya Capital since 2016.

Naver Chief Executive Soo Yeon Choi said the company has been investing in the European market for more than 10 years and has sought partners for expanded collaboration.

Choi said Wallapop had established itself in Spain's C2C market.

Wallapop Chief Executive Rob Cassedy said the companies had considered various options for collaboration since Naver's initial investment.

He said the acquisition would enable the integration of Naver's search, advertising, payment, and artificial intelligence technologies with Wallapop's services.

Wallapop generates revenue through payment fees, shipping fees, advertising, and subscription products for professional sellers. 

The platform uses location-based matching, real-time chat, rating systems, and AI-based recommendation algorithms.

The Spanish company expanded to Italy in 2021 and Portugal in 2022. Wallapop operates in the used automobile and refurbished electronics markets, stating it holds a leading position in the used car vertical.

Naver operates C2C platforms including Poshmark in North America, KREAM in South Korea, and Soda in Japan.

The company said the Wallapop acquisition would expand its global C2C business to Europe.