This article was displayed on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove (MM) site at 8:16 a.m. on July 16, 2026.
Private equity fund (PEF) manager STIC Investments is pushing to set up a new fund worth around the trillion-won level. Although it was selected as a general partner (GP) in the Export-Import Bank's commitment program and then struggled with fundraising, it turned the tide after recently being chosen as the second-round indirect investment GP for the Public Growth Fund. The performance of its HYBE investment is seen as a tailwind.
According to the investment banking (IB) industry on the 16th, STIC Investments recently finalized a plan to launch a new fund of around 1 trillion won. After being selected in April as the GP for the Export-Import Bank's "Export SME and mid-sized corporation region-led growth fund," it was also picked as the second-round indirect investment GP for the Public Growth Fund, securing about 25% of its fundraising target.
In particular, its bid in the second-round indirect investment program of the Public Growth Fund and selection as a GP in the scale-up league proved decisive. The scale-up league focuses on supplying growth capital of at least 30 billion won per deal to SMEs and mid-sized corporations valued at 100 billion won or more, and the Public Growth Fund's commitment alone is understood to reach 200 billion won.
STIC Investments had been seen as unlikely to launch a new fund this year. Early this year, it underwent changes in its governance as a U.S. fund became the largest shareholder, and later it attempted the first-round indirect investment program of the Public Growth Fund but failed. It did not even make the shortlist in the large-cap league.
At the time, concerns even spread within STIC Investments about having to return the Export-Import Bank's investment. That is because financial authorities decided to apply a 100% risk-weighted assets (RWA) special case only to investments in the Public Growth Fund's sub-funds, causing private commitments to flow solely to Public Growth Fund GPs.
In fact, STIC Investments had to set up a new fund of at least 250 billion won by the end of this year. The Export-Import Bank set a six-month deadline after selection to establish a sub-fund of at least 250 billion won. If the fund is not formed within the deadline, it must return the investment and also faces a penalty banning commitment requests for a certain period.
The liquidation in February of "STIC Special Situation Private Equity Investment Partnership" (SSF No. 1) became the catalyst for being selected as a second-round indirect investment GP for the Public Growth Fund and for the fundraising turnaround. While the quantitative benchmark date for the liquidated fund's return rate in the first-round selection was the end of last year, it was adjusted to the end of the first quarter this year for the second round, bringing SSF No. 1 into scope.
Formed in April 2016 at 603.2 billion won, SSF No. 1 was called STIC Investments' flagship fund. In particular, it invested 103.8 billion won in HYBE(352820) in Oct. 2018 and recovered a total of 947 billion won after HYBE's 2020 listing. The multiple on invested capital exceeded 9 times, and the IRR came to 137%.
Beyond that, STIC Investments invested from SSF No. 1 in Hanwha Systems, Hancom Lifecare, HK inno.N, and DDI. After STIC Investments' investment, all these corporations succeeded in initial public offerings (IPOs). Although it posted some losses on Hancom Lifecare, SSF No. 1's overall average annual return exceeded 22% on an IRR basis.
An IB industry source said, "STIC Investments, which did not even make the shortlist in the first-round indirect investment program of the Public Growth Fund, was ultimately selected as a GP in the immediately following second round thanks largely to SSF No. 1's liquidation performance," adding, "The HYBE investment is one of the standout exits even in the PE sector."
Some observers say STIC Investments could raise a new fund larger than 1 trillion won. While the Public Growth Fund capped the hard cap (fund limit) at 200% of the minimum fund size in the first-round indirect investment program, it did not set a separate hard cap ceiling for the scale-up league in the second round.
A STIC Investments representative said, "Our cumulative scale-up investment volume exceeds 3 trillion won, our exit return rate is over 40%, and our extensive experience managing multiple blind funds as a large PEF manager all appear to have been reflected," adding, "But we have not yet decided the precise size of the fund."