Government to Invest $15 Million in Newly Established ADB Venture Fund

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwangho Lee] The Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced on the 2nd that they will invest 15 million dollars in the 'ADB Ventures Facility Investment Fund' newly established by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

The ADB Ventures Fund invests in sectors necessary for sustainable development in developing countries in Southeast Asia, such as clean technology, fintech, agriculture, and healthcare, and also includes domestic startups entering Southeast Asia as investment targets.

It also has the nature of a 'Social Impact Fund' that pursues social values such as poverty, climate, healthcare, and gender equality along with profitability.

The total fund size is 60 million dollars, with participation from the Finnish government (22 million dollars), the Climate Investment Fund (13 million dollars), and the Nordic Development Fund (10 million dollars) in addition to Korea.

Our government will invest 10 million dollars from the mother fund operated by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and 5 million dollars from the ADB 'e-Asia Knowledge Cooperation Trust Fund' operated by the Ministry of Economy and Finance to support developing countries in the Asia-Pacific region.

In particular, this is the first time that the Korean mother fund has invested in an international organization with a public interest nature. Based on its experience operating social impact funds since 2018 and conducting social value investments, the mother fund plans to actively support the operation of the ADB Ventures Fund.

With the launch of the ADB Ventures Fund, opportunities for Korean ventures and startups, including in the K-quarantine sector, to enter countries targeted by the New Southern Policy will expand, and the cooperation relationship between Korea and ADB is expected to strengthen, the government said.

ADB plans to hold a launch event for the Ventures Fund during the 2020 ADB Annual Meeting, which will be held in Songdo, Incheon from September 18 to 21 this year.

Additionally, the ADB Ventures Fund will regularly hold 'Excellent Venture and Startup Investment Briefings' in Korea.

Park Il-young, Director General of the Development Finance Bureau at the Ministry of Economy and Finance, said, "ADB has shown great interest in cooperation with Korean institutions from the early stages of the Ventures Fund launch," adding, "The launch of the ADB Ventures Fund will be an opportunity for innovation and sustainable growth for developing countries, and a chance to strengthen cooperation with ADB and New Southern countries for our companies and investors."

Park Yong-soon, Venture Innovation Policy Officer at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, said, "It will be an opportunity to support domestic companies' entry into the Southeast Asian market by utilizing ADB's local network," and added, "We will actively support investment briefings to help Korea's excellent ventures and startups enter emerging markets."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.