The domestic venture investment market posted 13.6 trillion won in investments last year, marking the second-highest performance on record. Private capital accounted for 80% of total fund formation, driving market growth. Growth was also evident, with the number of unicorn corporations increasing to 27, centered on deep-tech fields such as artificial intelligence (AI) and semiconductors.
According to the "2025 venture investment trends" released by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups on the 13th, the amount of new venture investment last year totaled 13.6 trillion won, up 14.0% from a year earlier. It was the second-highest performance on record after 2021 (15.9 trillion won). The number of deals hit a record high at 8,542. Notably, 1.4 trillion won of the 1.7 trillion won overall increase in investment was concentrated in the second half.
New venture fund formation rose 34.1% from a year earlier to 14.3 trillion won. In the second half, funds totaling 7.9 trillion won were formed, up 45% from a year earlier. Policy finance commitments stood at 2.7 trillion won, and the private institutional sector at 11.5 trillion won, with the private share accounting for 80% of the total. Private commitments increased sharply, led by pension funds and mutual aid associations, general corporations, and financial institutions, driving fund formation.
Investment sectors accelerated their shift from existing ICT services to real-economy fields. Investment in bio and medical fields increased the most, while the game sector posted a high growth rate of 69.4%.
By corporate stage, investment in corporations more than seven years after founding expanded, while the share of early-stage corporations decreased. The Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) plans to activate investment in early startups by doubling the parent fund's commitments to the early-startup field from a year earlier and creating a dedicated fund of at least 333.3 billion won.
Of this, a 50 billion won tranche will be created as a startup boom fund to invest in early-stage startups selected through the "Startup for All Project." The ministry plans to overhaul the overall commitment program, including giving preference to managers with strong early-stage investment performance.
As of last year, there were 27 domestic unicorn corporations. It was found that it took an average of 7 years and 8 months from founding to grow into a unicorn corporation. Newly added were four corporations: Rebellions, FuriosaAI, Benow, and Galaxy Corporation.
Minister Han Seong-sook of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) said, "It is positive that both venture investment and fund formation increased, and that the rise in private commitments led to the expansion of fund formation," adding, "We will prepare a range of support measures so that venture corporations not only expand investment but also leap to unicorn corporations and become drivers of new vitality and innovation in the economy."