K Cube Ventures, one of the most prominent early-stage venture capital in Korea, has become the startup investment arm of Daum Kakao, operator of KakaoTalk, South Korea’s top instant messaging service. Their plan is to better support startups through Daum Kakao’s massive assets and business know-how.
Daum Kakao announced today that they will acquire 100% of K Cube Ventures. The company is expected to provide faster and better support to startups by combining their core competencies in online and mobile businesses, together with K Cube Ventures’ expertise in early-stage investment. As a result, K Cube Ventures will be better able to support existing and potential portfolio companies whilst Daum Kakao is expected to foster the start-up ecosystem and find new growth drivers.
K Cube Ventures will run independently after acquisition Daum Kakao also decided to increase K Cube Ventures’ capital by US$15 million. This will be used to launch a new early-stage fund this year.
K Cube Ventures CEO Jimmy Rim said, “Cooperation with Daum Kakao will open up new opportunities for startups that are keen to innovate mobile life across South Korea and Asia.”
K Cube Ventures is a venture capital fund, founded in 2012 to invest in and support early stage startups. Starting with paid-in capital of US$5 million, K Cube Ventures raised US$11.5 million for the first fund (K Cube Venture Fund I) and US$30 million for the second (Kakao Venture Fund). Over the past three years, the company has invested in more than 40 startups, including star portfolios such as Red Sahara, Frograms, Wishlink, Vingle and Fincon. As a result, it has successfully established itself as a leading early stage venture capital in Korea.
Editing by Mike Cormack (@bucketoftongues)