Lee Dae-hee, the former Deputy Minister for Planning and Coordination at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, has been unexpectedly appointed as the head of Korea Venture Investment, a fund management agency under the ministry, drawing attention to the background of this decision.
The母基金 refers to a fund through which the government invests in venture capital (VC) funds formed by venture companies instead of directly investing in individual corporations to foster small and venture businesses. Each year, it receives budget allocations from various government ministries, including the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and the Ministry of Science and ICT, and as of the end of last year, the committed amount reached approximately 9.86 trillion won.
Initially, Byun Tae-seop, the Deputy Minister at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, had been a strong candidate for the head of Korea Venture Investment.
On the 21st, industry sources report that the former deputy minister was in the final candidate pool for the head of Korea Venture Investment, awaiting the president's final appointment process, when he faced difficulties due to a state of emergency declared by President Yoon Suk-yeol on Dec. 3.
In contrast, Yu Jong-pil, the former head of the Gwanak District Office, who had received presidential approval before the declaration, was scheduled to be appointed as the head of the Entrepreneurship Promotion Agency, another agency under the Ministry of SMEs and Startups.
Amidst this, the background of the former deputy minister being considered for the head of Korea Venture Investment is due to an instruction from Acting President Choi Sang-mok in January to resume the appointments of public institution heads at the Cabinet meeting.
At that time, Acting President Choi indicated that appointments of heads of public institutions could no longer be delayed and instructed that for those where presidential approval had not been granted, the appointments should be reconsidered from the beginning.
The former deputy minister shares a common background with Acting President Choi, as both are alumni of 'Seoul National University' and the 'Ministry of Economy and Finance.' The former deputy minister graduated from the Department of Business Administration at Seoul National University and obtained a master's degree in business administration from the University of Birmingham in the UK. He began his public service career in 1994 after passing the 37th Administrative Examination and has been recognized as a policy expert with 26 years of experience only in the Ministry of Economy and Finance, having held key positions such as the director of the Social Policy Division, the Prices Division, and the Human Resources Policy Division, as well as the Director of Economic Structure Reform.
In contrast, the former deputy minister Byun graduated from Korea University with a degree in public administration and earned a master's degree in public administration from the University of Washington in the U.S. He entered public service in 1996 after passing the 38th Administrative Examination and has worked for more than 25 years in the Small and Medium Business Administration and the Ministry of SMEs and Startups. He has been regarded as a suitable candidate for the head of Korea Venture Investment due to his deep understanding of the venture sector.
An industry official noted, 'As the Constitutional Court's decision on President Yoon's impeachment trial is imminent, many political figures eyeing the head of Korea Venture Investment are also heading toward an early presidential election. This may have facilitated the smooth progress of the former deputy minister's appointment.' They added, 'While the former deputy minister Byun preemptively submitted his resignation to support his candidacy for the head of Korea Venture Investment, the former deputy minister Lee finalized his appointment and submitted his resignation on the 16th, highlighting the contrasting fates of the two individuals.'
Since its launch in 2005, Korea Venture Investment has been led by individuals from private sectors such as securities firms and venture capitalists. Now, with a bureaucrat being appointed as the new head, both expectations and concerns have arisen within and outside the industry. While it creates significant positions for those from the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, there are concerns that the agency's operation, already dependent on the ministry's influence, could become even more reliant.