What THE VC does

THE VC (더브이씨) operates Korea's largest startup investment data platform, providing comprehensive coverage of unlisted Korean startup financial data, investment and M&A deal tracking, IR (investor relations) services, and grant program information. The platform serves venture capital firms, corporate investors, individual investors, startups, government agencies, and accelerators through a horizontal SaaS model delivered at thevc.kr. Headquartered in Seoul with 1-10 employees, the company has been operating since 2016 and processes data on 8조+ KRW in investment volume across 626 deals and 2,041 grant/support programs.

The core product is the Investment Database, covering startups, investors, funds, investment deals, and M&A activity. Supporting modules include an Integrated Search tool, IR Service for company fundraising announcements, Peer Group Comparison for multi-dimensional benchmarking, and Collections (including Smart Collections with automated filter-based alerts). In April 2026, THE VC launched an AI Financial Analysis Tool that expands beyond six key metrics to provide account-level financial statement breakdowns (assets, liabilities, capital structure, revenue flows) coupled with AI-generated interpretive insights on company stability, growth potential, and profitability. Infrastructure is hosted on AWS with payments processed via Toss Payments and content integrated through YouTube's API.

The business model is a tiered subscription (Basic/Pro plans) with a freemium layer — basic startup data is accessible to all users, while advanced financial data, AI analysis, and detailed company profiles are gated behind paid tiers. Subscription payments are processed monthly or annually via credit card or cash deposit, with a cancellation policy including a 10% penalty. The company is privately held with no disclosed institutional investors beyond 2016 seed (Bigbang Angels, The Invention Lab, VentureSquare) and 2019 follow-on (Bluepoint). Representative director Byun Jae-geuk (변재극) serves as CEO.

Name

THE VC

Legal name

주식회사 더브이씨

Website

https://thevc.kr

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

THE VC (더브이씨) operates Korea's largest startup investment data platform, providing unlisted startup financial data, deal tracking, IR services, and AI-powered financial analysis to investors, VCs, startups, and government agencies via a subscription SaaS model.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Seoul

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Subscription Services: THE VC operates a tiered subscription model (Basic/Pro plans) providing access to premium startup investment data, financial analysis, company profiles, and market intelligence. Paid members can unlock locked information and access detailed data views.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

THE VC operates thevc.kr, Korea's largest startup investment data platform, providing a comprehensive database of startups, investors, funds, investment deals, M&A activity, and grant/R&D programs. It sells tiered subscription access (Basic/Pro) to detailed startup financial data, AI-powered financial analysis, IR listings, peer group comparisons, and curated collections.

Product overview

THE VC is a unified startup investment data platform combining a comprehensive startup database with integrated analytical and collaboration tools. The core product is the Investment Database (한국 스타트업 투자 데이터베이스), which covers startups, investors, funds, investment deals, and M&A data. The platform extends this core with additional modules including the AI Financial Analysis Tool (launched April 2026), which adds account-level financial statement analysis and AI-generated interpretive insights; an IR Service for company investor relations; a Peer Group Comparison tool for multi-dimensional company benchmarking; and a Collections system (including Smart Collections with automated filter-based alerts) for curating and monitoring companies. All modules operate within the same platform interface at thevc.kr.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• AI Financial Analysis Tool AI-powered financial analysis feature providing account-level breakdowns of startup financial statements (asset, liability, capital structure, revenue flows) with AI-generated interpretive insights on company stability, growth potential, and profitability for Korean unlisted startups.
• Investment Database Korea's largest startup investment data platform providing comprehensive data on startups, investors, funds, investment deals, M&A activity, and IR (Investor Relations) listings for Korean startups; tracks 8조+ KRW across 626 deals.
• Grant Program Database Database of 2,041 grant and support programs available to Korean startups, including filters for registration date, deadline, category, and funding type.

Quantifiable outcome

• Addresses market gap for startup investment analysis tools focused on unlisted companies from investor perspective

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability3 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Google/YouTubecoreTechnology or IntegrationTHE VC integrates YouTube API services to provide video content and data. The platform utilizes YouTube content within its service offerings, operating under YouTube's terms of service and data policies.
• Amazon Web Services (AWS)coreTechnology or IntegrationAWS provides cloud server infrastructure for THE VC's platform operations and data storage, both domestically and internationally.
• Channel Corporation (주식회사 채널코퍼레이션)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerChannel Corporation handles customer center operations and marketing tasks for THE VC as part of service enhancement outsourcing.
• Toss Payments (토스페이먼츠)coreTechnology or IntegrationToss Payments processes credit card payments for THE VC's subscription services, enabling the company's paid service monetization.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Crunchbase: The leading global startup and investment data platform. Comparable to THE VC as a subscription-based database of startups, investors, deals, and funding rounds, with tiered access and increasingly analytics-driven features.
• PitchBook: Premium VC, PE, and M&A data terminal from Morningstar. Comparable to THE VC for its coverage of private-market deals, funds, investors, and emerging AI-driven analytics targeting institutional investors.
• CB Insights: Market intelligence platform for venture, startups, and emerging tech. Comparable to THE VC for combining a private-company database with AI-driven predictive analytics and enterprise subscriptions.
• Dealroom.co: European-rooted startup and investment database with deep international coverage. Comparable to THE VC as a data platform offering deal tracking, company profiles, and ecosystem reports on a subscription model.
• Tracxn: Private-market data platform covering startups, investors, and sector trends globally. Comparable to THE VC for its subscription-based delivery of startup and deal intelligence with comparable Asia and emerging-market coverage.

Broad incumbents

• S&P Capital IQ Pro: Broad financial intelligence platform with private-company and deal data sitting alongside listed-market coverage. Comparable to THE VC for serving professional investors with deal intelligence, but with much wider scope.
• Bloomberg Terminal: Comprehensive financial data terminal including private-market and deal data. Comparable to THE VC only at the level of serving professional investors with subscription data, but with vastly broader scope and scale.

Others

• Kakao: Korean internet conglomerate with venture and startup-ecosystem interests. Relevant as a potential Korean strategic acquirer or partner that could embed THE VC's startup data into Kakao's broader platform.
• Naver: Korean internet and AI platform with D2SF and startup-investment activity. Relevant as a potential Korean strategic acquirer with computing infrastructure and data-distribution reach that could complement THE VC.
• Toss (Viva Republica): Korean fintech super-app and THE VC's payment processor (Toss Payments). Relevant as an existing infrastructure partner and a potential Korean strategic acquirer with deep distribution into retail and SME investors.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors4 records

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

M&A

Investments1 record

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

Frequently asked questions about THE VC