This article was published on May 8, 2025, at 3:43 p.m. on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove site.
Venture capital (VC) Company K is set to join the ranks of large VCs with assets under management (AUM) exceeding 1 trillion won. It is understood that a new venture investment fund of 100 billion won is set to be established next month. The AUM, which was about 940 billion won at the end of last year, is expected to surpass 1 trillion won.
According to the VC industry on the 8th, Company K is planning to hold an inaugural meeting for a new venture investment fund tentatively called 'Company K Future Tech Fund' worth about 100 billion won as early as the 10th of next month. This will be the company's 30th fund, and it will be the first large fund of 100 billion won in over two years since the establishment of the 'IBK-Company K Innovation Growth Fund' in 2023.
Company K previously secured Korea Development Bank (KDB) as a core limited partner (LP) last September, marking the beginning of full-scale fundraising efforts. At that time, the Industrial Bank of Korea selected Company K as the small general partner (GP) with an investment of 30 billion won for the 'AI Korea Fund' aimed at fostering artificial intelligence (AI) technology companies.
Company K subsequently secured an additional 10 billion won by obtaining GP qualifications from the Military Mutual Aid Association's VC investment project. This year, it was selected as a GP in the fund-of-funds scale-up category, securing an additional 25 billion won, leading to Company K reportedly gathering the 100 billion won minimum amount set by the Industrial Bank of Korea in just nine months.
Starting as an independent VC in 2006, Company K has been recognized as a 'deep tech dynasty' for its continued investment in technology startups. Company K has early-stage invested in over 60 AI technology corporations, with a cumulative investment of 300 billion won, including companies like Upstage and Nota.
The investment performance has also been good. At the time of liquidation this year, the 'Company K Startup Win-Win Fund' (42 billion won), 'Company K Partners Digital Content Korea Fund' (15 billion won), and 'Company K Challenge Fund' (20 billion won) had already invested in companies such as Zigbang, Ridi, and Buzzvil, with all three funds entering the success fee range.
Market observations suggest that the scale of the Company K Future Tech Fund may increase to over 110 billion won. This is because Company K has secured a letter of commitment (LOC) for over 100 billion won while continuing to seek additional LPs targeted at financial institutions such as commercial banks.
Company K is also on the verge of entering the ranks of large VCs with AUM exceeding 1 trillion won. As of the end of last year, Company K was managing a total of 18 funds with an AUM of 943.9 billion won. If the new fund of up to 110 billion won is established, the number of managed funds will increase to 19, and the AUM will exceed 1.05 trillion won.
Meanwhile, Company K plans to focus its investments through the Company K Future Tech Fund on leading companies in the AI infrastructure, robotics, and autonomous driving industries. Lee Kang-soo, the head of Company K's investment division, has been appointed as the lead fund manager. Additionally, Vice President Byeon Jun-young and Executive Director Kim Woo-young have been named as core management personnel.