This article was displayed on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove (MM) site at 3:24 p.m. on Aug. 14, 2026.
Venture capital (VC) T.S. Investment invested in Musinsa. It is understood to have acquired some existing shares at about 20,000 won per share, valuing the company at more than 4 trillion won. That exceeds the 3 trillion won valuation Musinsa received during its 2023 global fundraising and is seen as reflecting expectations for an IPO. With Musinsa starting its listing process and T.S. Investment stepping in, there are also expectations that the listing work will proceed smoothly.
On the 14th, according to the VC industry, T.S. Investment(246690) recently invested in Musinsa and became a shareholder. It acquired existing shares from current shareholders, using the "TS 17 Secondary Investment Partnership," which was formed in Nov. last year with 123 billion won. This is T.S. Investment's first investment in Musinsa.
T.S. Investment set the purchase price for Musinsa's existing shares at more than 20,000 won per share. That is similar to the price of Musinsa shares traded in the unlisted markets such as Naver Pay Unlisted, and based on Musinsa's total number of shares outstanding of 204,453,662, the overall valuation far exceeds 4 trillion won.
It is meaningful in that a valuation of more than 4 trillion won was recognized before the IPO. In July 2023, when global private equity firm KKR, together with Wellington Management, made a new investment of 200 billion won in Musinsa, the recognized valuation was around 3 trillion won.
IPO expectations led T.S. Investment to set a valuation exceeding 4 trillion won. Musinsa late last year selected Korea Investment & Securities Co. and Citigroup Global Markets as joint lead underwriters and planned to list as early as early next year. This month, it also began pre-filing consultations with the Korea Exchange (KRX) before submitting a preliminary listing review.
Improved profitability also reportedly influenced T.S. Investment's decision to invest in Musinsa. Musinsa accelerated not only the build-out of offline locations but also expansion in beauty, and last year posted consolidated revenue of 1.4679 trillion won and operating profit of 140.5 billion won. Those were up 18% and 37%, respectively, from a year earlier.
This year, it is continuing to improve earnings on the back of overseas expansion. In the first quarter, it recorded consolidated revenue of 363.6 billion won and operating profit of 19 billion won. Revenue and operating profit each increased 24% and 8% from the same period a year earlier. As it broadened its business scope to furniture and food, 29CM's results also appeared to be on a growth trend.
An official in the VC industry said, "Considering that VCs aim for about a 1.5 times return with pre-IPO investments, T.S. Investment effectively sees Musinsa's IPO valuation at more than 6 trillion won," adding, "This existing-share transaction could be used as a benchmark for Musinsa to set its future IPO valuation."