South Korea's Naver purchases U.S. e-commerce area Poshmark for $1.2 billion

October 5, 2022: -On Monday, the parties reported that South Korean internet giant Naver is acquiring U.S. e-retailer Poshmark for roughly $1.2 billion. Poshmark shares popped very 14% in extended trading.

Naver is paying $17.90 per share in the all-cash deal. Shares of the South Korean internet colossus slid over 7% in Asia’s trading session, while Poshmark closed at $15.57.

Naver operates a tracking motor, e-commerce platform, and other services in South Korea. The companies said the deal would deepen Naver’s reach in online retail while letting Poshmark enter international markets.

Poshmark is a popular online retail site that lets people shop from other users’ closets. The company shifted public in January 2021 at $42 a share, hitting the market when online shopping was surging due to the Covid-19 pandemic and investors were flocking to tech stocks.

Since then, the stock has declined sharply, tumbling alongside the rest of the tech industry.

Naver and Poshmark said they anticipate the deal to generate “significant revenue and cost synergies,” including re-acceleration of annual revenue growth beyond 20% in the near term, as ads improve monetization, investments expand overseas, and live commerce gets greater adoption.

Etsy acquired fashion resale app Depop for $1.62 billion last year. The deal adds to the recent consolidation in the secondhand clothes market. Depop competes with Poshmark and other resale services like ThredUp.

The companies will host a conference call to discuss the deal at 9 p.m. ET on Monday.