This article was posted on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove (MM) site at 4:05 p.m. on Dec. 16, 2025.
Rapport Labs, operator of the middle-aged women's fashion platform Queenit, will be able to pay the full 110 billion won purchase price for SK Stoa in cash. After venture capital firm Altos Ventures pledged investment, Kakao Ventures also decided to make an additional investment, securing a commitment of 44 billion won.
Rapport Labs currently holds about 65 billion won in cash (including short-term financial instruments). Adding the VC committed funds brings the total to 109 billion won. In addition, VC Company K Partners has decided to invest 10 billion won, conditional on completion of procedures such as approval of the change in major shareholder by the Korea Media and Communications Commission (KMCC).
According to the VC industry on the 16th, Kakao Ventures recently positioned itself as an ally of Rapport Labs, which is pursuing the acquisition of SK Stoa. It recently held an internal investment review committee and decided to participate in Rapport Labs' third-party allotment rights offering, investing 4 billion won. It was confirmed that it also submitted a letter of commitment (LOC).
Rapport Labs earlier entered the SK Stoa sale and emerged as the preferred bidder. The acquisition target is 100% of the equity of SK Stoa held by SK Telecom. Earlier this month, it reached a final agreement with SK Telecom on the sale and acquisition terms for SK Stoa and is preparing to sign the main contract. The final purchase price is expected to be around 110 billion won.
Kakao Ventures' 4 billion won investment is interpreted as support for Rapport Labs' fund-raising for the acquisition. Concerns about a leveraged buyout by a startup arose because the startup, founded in 2020 with annual sales of about 71.1 billion won and operating at a loss, was attempting to acquire a profitable company with annual sales of 302.3 billion won as of last year.
With Kakao Ventures' investment commitment, concerns about a leveraged buyout have disappeared. This follows Altos Ventures' commitment of 40 billion won and Kakao Ventures' decision to invest 4 billion won. Both are participating through a paid-in capital increase, so it will not be a leveraged buyout that incurs debt to acquire the company, as some had feared.
Altos Ventures and Kakao Ventures reportedly evaluated highly that Rapport Labs, which operates a fashion platform specializing in women in their 40s and 50s, would achieve significant business synergy if it acquired home shopping channel operator SK Stoa. Immediately, Queenit would secure home shopping channels and SK Stoa would secure mobile channels.
VCs especially expect SK Stoa to achieve steep growth based on Queenit. Home shopping companies such as KT Alpha and Lotte Homeshopping have already used Queenit as a means to expand online sales. This time, Queenit would directly supply planned products to home shopping.
With VC support, Rapport Labs will be able to raise the SK Stoa acquisition funds in cash. Rapport Labs has about 65 billion won in cash and cash equivalents and short-term financial instruments, and including the committed investments from Altos Ventures (40 billion won) and Kakao Ventures (4 billion won), it will have 109 billion won in cash.
There are expectations that Rapport Labs will be able to secure even additional investment funds in cash after acquiring SK Stoa. Although it has completed a large part of the purchase price arrangement, VCs such as Company K Partners, KB Investment and LB Investment are continuing to consider investments.
Company K Partners has decided to invest 10 billion won, conditional on completion of procedures such as approval of the change in major shareholder by the KMCC. KB Investment and LB Investment are also reportedly reviewing 10 billion won investments each, rating highly the potential increase in Rapport Labs' corporate value following the SK Stoa acquisition.
Meanwhile, the hurdles Rapport Labs must clear after largely finishing fund-raising are condensed to KMCC approval and possible union opposition. Data home shopping company SK Stoa is an operator approved based on public interest, so KMCC approval is required when there is a change in the major shareholder. The application for change of major shareholder must be filed within 30 days of the main contract.
It is reported that the SK Stoa branch under the SK Broadband labor union is demanding full succession of working conditions, guarantees of employment stability and succession of collective agreements. Although this is a step back from the initial "categorical opposition to the sale," there is an expectation that employment negotiations will not be easy.