Korea Investment Partners

What Korea Investment Partners does

Korea Investment Partners Co., Ltd. (KIP) is a Seoul-headquartered venture capital and private equity firm incorporated in 1986 as the investing affiliate of Korea Investment Holdings, one of Korea's leading financial conglomerates. Over more than 30 years, KIP has built a fund-oriented platform that currently manages 16 active venture and PE funds with 1.2 trillion KRW (~$857M USD) in assets under management and has reported a 3.7% IRR since 2001. The firm invests across five sector verticals — Biotech & Healthcare, Interactive Contents & Media, Consumer Internet & Fintech, ICT & Digitalization, and Semiconductor & Industrial — deploying capital from early-stage ventures through growth-stage companies and into mature private equity. Its portfolio includes founders connected to major Korean technology outcomes such as Naver and Kakao, and it operates regionally dedicated sub-products including KIP China Funds, KIP Southeast Asia (Singapore), and KIP US (Sunnyvale).

KIP earns revenue through two standard VC/PE streams: recurring fund management fees charged on the 1.2T KRW AUM base across its 16 active funds, and performance-based carried interest and capital gains from portfolio exits via IPOs and M&A. Deal flow is sourced primarily through direct outreach from its 7 regional offices (Seoul, Shanghai, Beijing, Chengdu, Guangzhou, Sunnyvale, Singapore) supplemented by co-investment syndicates with strategic and corporate investors (KB Investment, Headline Asia, Smilegate, Hyundai Motor Group) and participation in industry events such as BIO USA. The firm does not publicly disclose fund-level economics, individual fund sizes, or company-level revenue, and operates a 51–100-person organization with 21 named investment professionals. Recent strategic emphasis has shifted toward AI ecosystem curation via the Microsoft- and OpenAI-supported Korea Investment Accelerator and direct secondary-market exposure to US deep tech through SpaceX and Anthropic stakes.

Name

Korea Investment Partners

Legal name

Korea Investment Partners Co., Ltd.

Website

https://kipvc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Seoul-based venture capital and private equity firm (founded 1986) affiliated with Korea Investment Holdings, managing 16 active funds and 1.2T KRW AUM across biotech, fintech, ICT, semiconductor, and consumer sectors in Korea, China, the US, and Southeast Asia.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Venture Capital and Private Equity

NAICS

Other Investment Pools and Funds (5259), Other Financial Investment Activities (5239)

SIC

Security Brokers, Dealers & Flotation Companies (6211)

akta.pro primary industry

Geography-Specialist Buyout (Regional/Country-Focused) (FSANABAF)

Keywords

• Venture capital
• Private equity
• Growth equity investing
• Biotech investments
• Technology investments

Headquarters

HQ city

Seoul

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Offices7 records

Markets served

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Fund Management Fees: Recurring management fees charged on the 1.2T KRW of assets under management across KIP's 16 active venture and private equity funds.
2. Carried Interest and Capital Gains: Performance-based economics from successful exits (IPOs and M&A) of portfolio companies, reflected in KIP's 3.7% IRR since 2001.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Korea Investment Partners (KIP) is a fund-oriented venture capital and private equity firm that deploys capital across 16 active funds totaling 1.2 trillion KRW in assets under management. It invests in early-stage ventures through growth-stage companies across five sectors: Biotech & Healthcare, Interactive Contents & Media, Consumer Internet & Fintech, ICT & Digitalization, and Semiconductor & Industrial, with regional fund vehicles spanning Korea, China, the US, and Southeast Asia.

Product overview

Korea Investment Partners (KIP) is Asia's leading venture capital and private equity house operating a fund-oriented platform-plus-sectors architecture. The core offering is a set of 16 active funds (1.2T KRW AUM, 3.7% IRR since 2001) that deploy capital across five distinct investment activity sectors: Biotech & Healthcare, Interactive Contents & Media, Consumer Internet & Fintech, ICT & Digitalization, and Semiconductor & Industrial. These sector mandates are complemented by regional sub-products including KIP China Funds (with offices in Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, and Chengdu), KIP Southeast Asia (KIP SEA) Fund (Singapore-based), and KIP US Fund (Sunnyvale-based), alongside a KIP Private Equity offering for mature companies. Since 1986 KIP has backed more than 30 years of investments from early-stage ventures to growth-stage companies, forging relationships and supporting business operations and global expansion across industries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Korea Investment Partners (KIP) Funds Fund-oriented venture capital products with 16 active funds and 1.2T KRW AUM generating 3.7% IRR since 2001; the primary capital-deployment vehicles across all five investment activity sectors.
• Korea Investment Partners (KIP) Private Equity Private equity offering supporting step-function growth of mature companies alongside the venture capital funds.
• KIP China Funds Regional fund vehicle for China investments, with offices in Shanghai (main), Beijing, Guangzhou, and Chengdu.
• KIP Southeast Asia (KIP SEA) Fund Regional fund vehicle for Southeast Asia investments, with the Singapore office opened in 2020.
• KIP US Fund Regional fund vehicle for United States investments, based in Sunnyvale.
• Biotech & Healthcare Investments

Quantifiable outcome

• 30+ years of continuous VC operations since 1986 incorporation
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record.

• MicrosoftStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration through the Korea Investment Accelerator to provide AI support, tools, and resources to Korean startups. Includes joint workshops and capability-building programs for portfolio companies.
• OpenAIStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorkshop collaboration with KIP for AI-related portfolio support and education within the Korea Investment Accelerator program.
• Korea Investment HoldingsStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent affiliate and one of Korea's top financial conglomerates, providing KIP with corporate resources, capital markets access, and a broader financial services network.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves12 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Smilegate Investment: Korean venture capital firm with comparable stage range and sector breadth; co-led GGWP's $15M Series A with KIP and Headline Asia, operating a fund-oriented platform that invests in Korean and global startups across gaming, consumer, and enterprise.
• KDB Capital: Korean state-affiliated venture capital and growth investor; comparable in deploying multi-fund capital across Korean SMEs, startups, and growth-stage companies with policy-aligned mandates.
• Mirae Asset Venture Investment: Korean venture capital arm of Mirae Asset Financial Group; comparable as a Korean conglomerate-affiliated VC/PE with multi-fund, multi-sector exposure and pan-Asian reach.
• KB Investment: Korean venture capital and private equity firm and sister affiliate within the broader Korean financial conglomerate landscape; co-invested with KIP in Xpanner's Series B and operates a similar multi-fund, multi-stage platform focused on Korean and pan-Asian deals.
• Korea Growth Investment Corp. Korean government-affiliated growth and venture capital investor; comparable as a Korea-based fund-oriented VC/PE manager backing early- and growth-stage companies across multiple sectors.
• Headline Asia (formerly Infinity Ventures): Pan-Asian venture capital firm with strong presence in Japan, Korea, and SEA; co-led GGWP's Series A with KIP and competes directly for similar Series A/B opportunities in consumer internet and SaaS across the region.
• Altos Ventures: Korea- and Asia-focused venture capital firm; comparable in size and stage focus (early-to-growth venture), with overlapping Korean tech and consumer-internet deal flow.

Broad incumbents

• NH Investment & Securities: Korean securities and investment firm with venture and alternative investment arms; comparable as a Korea-rooted capital allocator with conglomerate backing and a multi-sector investment approach.
• Hanwha Investment & Securities: Diversified Korean financial conglomerate with venture and growth investment activities; overlaps with KIP in Korean VC/PE deal flow and corporate-partnered investments but operates as part of a much broader financial services and industrial portfolio.
• Baring Private Equity Asia: Large pan-Asian private equity firm with multi-fund, multi-sector exposure across Greater China, SEA, and North Asia; comparable to KIP's PE Fund I mandate and cross-regional deal sourcing, but operates at materially larger AUM scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/korea-investment-partners

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Subsidiaries6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments551 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Korea Investment Partners