Private equity fund (PEF) manager Forest Partners has integrated its venture capital (VC) subsidiary Forest Ventures with UTC Investment.
According to the VC industry on the 24th, Forest Partners on the 13th launched the integrated entity Forest Ventures, which merged Forest Ventures and UTC Investment.
The structure kept UTC Investment as the surviving entity, which absorbed Forest Ventures, coming about six months after it acquired mid-sized VC UTC Investment last year.
Forest Ventures will be operated under the co-CEO system of Han Seung and Hwang Ho-yeon.
Back in Aug. last year, Forest Partners acquired all the equity in UTC Investment held by Vice President Lim Sang-min of Daesang Group.
It then pursued the integration of the two VCs with the goal of combining the capabilities of Forest Ventures, which has a private-sector-centered management structure, and UTC Investment, which focuses on institutional policy funds.
The Ministry of SMEs and Startups also gave final approval in Dec. last year to the change of the controlling shareholder of UTC Investment, which had been the biggest hurdle to the merger.
Forest Ventures will combine the two VCs' networks to pursue the formation of a blind fund of more than 100 billion won. It also strengthened investment competitiveness by pooling the professionalism of its investment managers and experience by industry.
A Forest Ventures official said, "Forest Ventures will leap forward as a large VC that has both the aggressiveness of a new house and the stability of a mid-sized VC."