This article was published on April 15, 2025, at 3:39 p.m. on ChosunBiz MoneyMove site.
In the first venture capital (VC) investment project selected by the National Credit Union Federation of Korea (NCUF), LB Investment and AJU IB INVESTMENT have been chosen, while Kakao Ventures, which attempted to re-enter the investment market after five years, has unfortunately not succeeded. Although the revenue of the VCs they supported was among the highest, they were hindered by a lawsuit with former Kakao CEO Lim Ji-hoon.
According to the investment banking (IB) industry on the 15th, the NCUF plans to invest 20 billion won each in LB Investment and AJU IB INVESTMENT, which have been selected for the investment project. The primary business focus is the innovative growth industry. The two management companies must establish the funds by October.
In the investment project started in February, 25 VCs applied. Large VCs, including DSC Investment, Korea Investment Partners, and Mirae Asset Venture Investment, along with medium-sized VCs like Capstone Partners and HB Investment, all showed significant interest.
Among them, the most attention-grabbing was Kakao Ventures, which challenged the investment market after five years. Kakao Ventures has been building its own fund without external investments since 2021. The 'Kakao Growth Hacking Fund', established at the end of 2020 with a size of 104.4 billion won, was the last fund to receive external investment.
Kakao Ventures, which had emerged as a dark horse, made it to the first short list of qualified candidates but ultimately did not get selected as an investment operator. Despite having investments like Dunamu and SHIFT UP that yielded substantial returns and revenue among the supported VCs, the lawsuit risk with former CEO Lim was a significant drawback.
Kakao Ventures earned more than 100 times the revenue from its investment in Dunamu through the 'KQube No. 1 Venture Fund,' which was liquidated in 2021, and last year, it made approximately 100 billion won from the recovery of its investment in SHIFT UP.
One disappointing factor is that shortly after the NCUF selected the qualified candidates for the VC investment project, Kakao quickly reached a settlement with former CEO Lim. In March 2022, Lim, who led the investment in Dunamu and contributed to Kakao Ventures' growth, filed a lawsuit against Kim Beom-soo, the chair of Kakao's board, and Kakao Ventures for 58.9 billion won, claiming he had not received the promised performance bonus.
Although Lim lost in the first trial, he appealed and the appeal case was ongoing. The appellate court recommended reconciliation on February 13, and as neither side raised objections for two weeks, a judicial reconciliation was finalized on the 7th of last month.
Industry analysts suggest that if Kakao Ventures had quickly settled with Lim, the outcome of the evaluation could have changed. An IB industry official noted, "From the perspective of conservative investors (LPs), such as pension funds or financial institutions, there is a tendency to avoid regions with apparent risks, even with high revenue," adding, "Had the settlement been quicker, the results may have changed."
However, Kakao Ventures has stated that its litigation with Lim did not influence the evaluation. A Kakao Ventures official remarked, "The lawsuit was a matter disclosed prior to the investment project, and we diligently clarified the information required during the evaluation process," asserting that "the lawsuit does not have a substantial impact on the company's operational stability and financial soundness, and thus cannot be connected to the investment outcomes."