– NHC, this year’s “largest real estate developer in the Middle East,” handles 70% of Saudi Arabian real estate transactions.

– Leading digital transformation in the real estate sector, including smart cities, with plans to create a map-based public administration super app with NAVER.

SEONGNAM, South Korea, Nov. 18, 2024 — TEAM NAVER will form a joint venture with Saudi Arabia’s National Housing Company (NHC), a state-owned entity under the Ministry of Municipalities and Housing. This JV will act as NAVER’s Saudi Arabian business unit, alongside NAVER Arabia (tentative name), which will manage MENA region operations.

TEAM NAVER and NHC signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to create the JV at Cityscape Global 2024, held from November 11 to 14 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The MOU signing included representatives from both companies, such as Chae Seon-ju (NAVER’s President of ESG and External Affairs), Kim Yuwon (NAVER Cloud CEO), Majed Al-Hogail (Saudi Arabian Minister of Municipalities and Housing), and Ryan Al-Aql (NHC’s CSO).

Operating under NAVER Arabia (tentative name), the JV will focus on the operation and commercialization of the digital twin platform in Saudi Arabia with NHC. This marks TEAM NAVER’s first Middle Eastern technology platform business.

NHC, a key TEAM NAVER partner in Saudi Arabia, is a state-owned company under the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Municipalities and Housing responsible for 70% of the nation’s real estate transactions. Aligned with Saudi Arabia’s “Vision 2030,” the company is prioritizing digital transformation, including real estate innovation and smart city development. Since its 2016 inception, NHC has overseen over 380 real estate development projects, including public housing, with a projected real estate portfolio exceeding 60 billion USD (80 trillion KRW) by the end of 2025. Construction Week Middle East named it the largest GCC real estate developer in 2024.

TEAM NAVER and NHC will operate and commercialize the digital twin platform in Saudi Arabia through the JV, alongside other ventures like an urban public monitoring platform and a map-enabled public administration super app.

“TEAM NAVER’s global technological and business competitiveness has been recognized by various Saudi Arabian ministries and organizations, and we are eager to explore further business opportunities with regional partners,” stated Chae Seon-ju, NAVER’s President of ESG and External Affairs.

From November 11 to 14, TEAM NAVER participated in and showcased its technologies at Cityscape Global 2024, a major Saudi Arabian construction exhibition, to pursue additional business opportunities.

About NAVER

Established in 1999, NAVER is Korea’s leading internet company. It operates Korea’s top search engine, ‘NAVER,’ alongside an e-commerce platform and various global online services, such as the LINE mobile messenger, Webtoon and Webnovel publishing, the SNOW video camera app, and the ZEPETO metaverse platform.

Beyond its own services, NAVER is developing a robust global business portfolio via partnerships with industry leaders, including Softbank, Poshmark, and Wattpad. NAVER reported KRW 9.6 trillion (USD 6.9 billion) in sales during 2023. The company allocates roughly 25% of annual sales to R&D, driving innovation through ongoing research and development in future technologies, such as artificial intelligence, robotics, and autonomous driving.

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SOURCE NAVER