"K-Startup, Becoming a Global Unicorn" Korea-US 280 Billion Won Joint Fund Established

South Korea and the United States are establishing a joint fund worth $215 million (approximately 280 billion KRW) to invest in domestic startups. Through this, the government aims to create K-Global unicorns (unlisted companies valued at over 1 trillion KRW) that will operate on the global stage.

On the 21st (local time), the Ministry of SMEs and Startups signed an agreement to form the Korea-US joint fund at the 'Korea-US Startup Summit' held at Pier 17 in New York, USA. The Korea-US joint fund, totaling $215 million, will be used for investing in domestic startups and supporting their overseas expansion.

The government agency Korea Venture Investment Corp. contributed 14% (39 billion KRW) of the fund through its mother fund. On the US side, three venture capital firms?RPS Ventures, Technology Value Partners, and Applied Ventures?participated. This joint fund is expected to serve as a driving force for domestic startups to build networks with global venture capital and enter the world market.

Additionally, Oracle, a major US IT company, has agreed to collaborate with the Korean government to jointly nurture startups. Starting next year, Oracle and the Korean government will plan and operate a joint startup nurturing program to help Korean startups grow by utilizing Oracle products, technology, and management know-how. The program plans to support 20 startups in the fields of artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud computing.

Lee Young, Minister of SMEs and Startups, stated, "This has become an opportunity to reaffirm the commitment of startup ecosystem stakeholders in both Korea and the US to support startups," adding, "Based on this cooperation, we hope K-Startups will expand globally and grow into global unicorns."

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