Korea Investment Management

What Korea Investment Management does

Korea Investment Management (한국투자신탁운용) is Korea's oldest investment trust company, founded in 1974 as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Korea Investment Financial Holdings (Korea's only investment-bank-centric financial group). The firm operates as a comprehensive asset manager offering thematic and sector ETFs under the ACE ETF sub-brand, Target Date Funds (TDF 알아서) with 13 vintage funds spanning retirement years 2015–2060, MY SUPER 알아서 pension products benchmarked to Australia's MySuper default option, and personal/retirement pension accounts distributed through Korean securities firms, banks, and insurance companies. KIM's core technology stack centers on the LTCMA (Long-Term Capital Market Assumptions) methodology analyzing 40+ years of economic cycles for asset allocation, deterministic TDF glide-path auto-rebalancing (76% to 39% equity allocation as investors approach retirement), and a partnership with Solactive for NLP-driven thematic index construction used in products like the KIM ACE US SMR Nuclear Top 10 ETF. The firm's revenue model is built on recurring management fees across a 50+ trillion won AUM base (as of 2019), supplemented by institutional mandates including the SHB private placement and regional ETF products like the ACE Vietnam VN30 ETF. Geographically, KIM serves Korean domestic investors as its primary market while maintaining regional subsidiaries in Vietnam (corporate since 2020), China (Shanghai office since 2011), and Indonesia (local subsidiary since 2024), with international investment themes spanning US space technology, semiconductors, nuclear energy, and emerging Asian equities. The company is led by CEO Bae Jae-gyu (appointed 2022), spun off its real estate business into Korea Investment Real Asset Management in 2022, and is currently operating under regulatory scrutiny from the Financial Supervisory Service over SpaceX-marketed products and single-stock leveraged ETFs.

Name

Korea Investment Management

Legal name

Korea Investment Management Co., Ltd.

Website

https://kim.koreainvestment.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Korea Investment Management is Korea's oldest investment trust company (founded 1974) and a subsidiary of Korea Investment Financial Holdings, offering thematic ETFs (ACE brand), Target Date Funds, and pension products to retail and institutional investors across Korea and Southeast Asia.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Asset Management

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394), Open-End Investment Funds (52591), All Other Financial Investment Activities (52399)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Large-Cap Equity (Active) (FSAAAIAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Employer Retirement Plan Advisory (401(k)/Pension) (FSAEABAE), Retirement & Pension Wealth (401(k)/IRA/SIPP/Superannuation Retail) (FSAAAAAJ), Corporate & Public Pension Funds (DB/DC Sponsors) (FSAAAGAA)

Keywords

• Asset management
• ETF products
• Pension funds
• Target date funds
• Investment trust management

Headquarters

HQ city

Seoul

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. ETF Management Fees: KIM generates revenue through management fees charged on its ACE ETF product line. The firm's ACE Global Semiconductor ETF launched in November 2022 has returned 6.1x its launch price, demonstrating strong product performance driving asset gathering.
2. Pension Fund Management: KIM manages TDF (Target Date Fund), DC/IRP pension accounts, and personal pension savings products, generating recurring management fees from pension assets under administration. TDF assets reached 1 trillion won milestone in 2022.
3. Thematic ETF Product Launches: KIM launches specialized ETFs targeting emerging themes (space, semiconductors, nuclear) to attract investor capital. Space-themed ETFs gained significant traction with retail investors ahead of SpaceX IPO, with net inflows exceeding 2 trillion won to space ETFs over one month.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Korea Investment Management is a Korea-based asset management firm that designs, launches, and manages investment products including ACE-branded exchange-traded funds (ETFs) covering themes such as semiconductors, US space technology, SMR nuclear energy, and Vietnamese equities; Target Date Funds (TDF 알아서) with automatic glide-path rebalancing for retirement savers; the MY SUPER 알아서 defined-contribution default option; and personal and corporate retirement pension accounts. The firm also participates as an institutional investor in foreign private placements such as SHB in Vietnam. Products are distributed through the Korea Exchange, securities firms, banks, and insurance companies.

Product overview

Korea Investment Management operates as a comprehensive asset management company offering a diversified portfolio of investment products. The core offering includes ACE-branded ETFs covering thematic areas (space technology, semiconductors, nuclear energy, international markets) and TDF (Target Date Fund) products for pension planning. The product architecture consists of the ACE ETF sub-brand for exchange-traded funds, TDF products for retirement planning (including TDF 알아서 and TDF알아서ETF포커스 variants), MY SUPER pension products, and individual pension/retirement pension accounts. The company also offers thematic ETFs like the ACE US Space Tech Active ETF, ACE Global Semiconductor ETF, ACE Vietnam VN30 ETF, and KIM ACE US SMR Nuclear Top 10 ETF.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ACE ETF: ETF brand offering various exchange-traded fund products including US space tech, semiconductor, and nuclear SMR ETFs
• TDF 알아서
• MY SUPER 알아서
• 알아서 연금

Products and services

• TDF 알아서 (Target Date Fund) Target Date Fund that automatically adjusts portfolio allocation based on retirement timeline, reducing equity exposure from 76% to 39% as retirement approaches. Offers 13 customized vintage funds matching different retirement target years for Korean retirement savers using DC, IRP, and personal pension accounts.
• ACE Global Semiconductor ETF ETF providing diversified exposure to the global semiconductor value chain, with allocations across SK Hynix (memory), NVIDIA (fabless), TSMC (foundry), and ASML (equipment). Targeted at retail and institutional investors seeking concentrated sector exposure.
• ACE US Space Tech Active ETF Actively managed ETF providing exposure to US space technology and aerospace companies, including a significant SpaceX allocation, targeted at Korean retail investor demand ahead of the SpaceX IPO.
• KIM ACE US SMR Nuclear Top 10 ETF ETF tracking US companies advancing Small Modular Reactor (SMR) and nuclear energy technology, utilizing Solactive's NLP algorithm to identify firms across the nuclear value chain. Listed on the Korea Exchange under ticker A0155M0.
• ACE Vietnam VN30 ETF

Quantifiable outcome

• ACE Global Semiconductor ETF returned 6.1x launch price since November 2022, outperforming Philadelphia Semiconductor Index by more than double
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• SolactivecoreTechnology or IntegrationSolactive partnered with KIM to launch the KIM ACE US SMR Nuclear Top 10 ETF using Solactive's proprietary natural language processing algorithm to identify firms across the nuclear value chain. The ETF was listed on Korea Exchange on February 3, 2026 with ticker code A0155M0.
• Timefolio Asset ManagementminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorBoth KIM and Timefolio Asset Management participated in SpaceX share purchases on the first trading day, with Timefolio among the six ETFs from four managers that added SpaceX to their portfolios.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves12 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• KB Asset Management: KB Asset Management is a major Korean asset manager within the KB Financial Group, offering ETFs, mutual funds, and pension products directly comparable to KIM's ACE ETF and TDF lineups.
• Shinhan Asset Management: Shinhan Asset Management is part of Shinhan Financial Group and competes directly with KIM in Korean retail and institutional fund management, including pension and ETF products.
• Mirae Asset Global Investments: Mirae Asset Global Investments is one of Korea's largest asset managers and a direct competitor in Korean ETFs, mutual funds, and pension products. Both firms compete head-to-head on thematic ETF launches (including SpaceX and leveraged single-stock products) and institutional pension mandates.
• Samsung Asset Management: Samsung Asset Management is a top-tier Korean asset manager competing with KIM across ETFs, TDFs, and pension products. Both were among the eight managers launching single-stock leveraged ETFs on Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix in May 2026.
• Hanwha Asset Management: Hanwha Asset Management is a Korean asset manager offering comparable ETFs, mutual funds, and pension products to retail and institutional clients, competing with KIM across product categories.
• Timefolio Asset Management: Timefolio Asset Management is a Korean asset manager that, alongside KIM, participated in SpaceX share purchases on debut day via ETFs, making it a direct peer in thematic Korean ETF management.

Broad incumbents

• Nomura Asset Management: Nomura Asset Management is a major Japanese/global asset manager with a broad product portfolio including ETFs and pension products. Comparable to KIM as a regional incumbent with similar product breadth across active and passive strategies.
• BlackRock: BlackRock is the world's largest asset manager and a benchmark for thematic ETF innovation (iShares brand), TDF lifecycle products (LifePath), and global asset allocation methodologies that compete with KIM's LTCMA framework.

Regional players

• VinaCapital: VinaCapital is a major Vietnamese asset manager operating in the same market as KIM's ACE Vietnam VN30 ETF and participated alongside KIM in SHB's private placement. Comparable as a Vietnam-focused asset manager serving Korean institutional capital.
• Dragon Capital: Dragon Capital is a Vietnam-focused asset manager that co-invested with KIM in SHB's private placement. Comparable as a regional asset manager operating in Vietnam where KIM is building local presence.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses3 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC0in5lbrkMgRurBXsux3SOA
• Instagraminstagram.com/aceetf_official

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Korea Investment Management