[In-Depth Look at Leading VCs]④"10 Years of Trust, 23-Fold Return" Atinuminvest Launches 1 Trillion Won Mega Fund

Jackpot Through Single-Fund Scaling Up
From 300 Billion Won to 1 Trillion Won in a Single Fund
Performance Volatility and Pressure to Deploy Capital Remain Concerns

Editor's NoteRecord-breaking amounts of capital are flooding into the venture investment market. As the government’s large-scale policy funds begin full operation, major venture capital (VC) firms are rapidly scaling up. However, simply having more money and managing it well are two very different matters. This series provides an in-depth analysis of the trends in the VC market and profiles the major VC firms in Korea over the course of 11 articles. We have selected the top houses by assets under management (AUM), excluding those with a heavy PE focus. After an overview of the entire market, the articles will examine each company's growth trajectory, flagship portfolios, investment philosophy and decision-making structure, key figures, and organizational culture.

In 2014, inside an investment committee meeting room in Gangnam, Seoul, intricately realistic ripples appeared in real time on a 3D fabric displayed on the monitor. This was a demonstration of the unique technology developed by the fashion tech startup CLO Virtual Fashion. Sensing the overwhelming potential beyond the screen, Atinuminvest boldly invested 3 billion won in this company, which at the time was valued at approximately 27 billion won. Even when CLO Virtual Fashion struggled through some growing pains and failed to generate meaningful profits for a period of time, Atinuminvest looked beyond short-term performance and made follow-up investments, focusing on the company’s intrinsic value.

Last year, Atinuminvest fully exited its holdings, posting a remarkable 23-fold multiple. This was made possible by the meteoric rise in CLO Virtual Fashion’s valuation to between 600 billion and 700 billion won. This achievement even earned Atinuminvest a spot on the shortlist for “Exit of the Year” at the prestigious AVCJ Awards 2025. It was a moment that validated Atinuminvest’s trademark investment philosophy, which prioritizes conviction over immediate returns.

Jackpot Hits Through Single-Fund Scaling Up

Originally founded in 1988 as Jeil Venture Capital, Atinuminvest, Korea’s first-generation independent VC, has been able to reap the rewards of long-term and follow-up investments thanks to its overwhelming fund scale. The firm believed that in order to continuously inject hundreds of billions of won into startups until they have established themselves, the fund itself must be large.

The fund that invested in CLO Virtual Fashion is a prime example. Established in 2014 with a size of 203 billion won, the Atinum High Growth Company Investment Association broke the industry norm of operating multiple small-scale funds by forming a single, large-scale fund. This led to the early discovery and investment in Dunamu, which is now considered one of the biggest jackpots in Korean VC history. Dunamu, which was valued at 50 billion won in 2016, grew into a 20 trillion won “giant” by 2021. Atinuminvest Vice President Kim Jewook, who led the investment, set an unprecedented record by earning a total of 48.563 billion won in bonuses alone for these results.

The total distributed proceeds from this fund, liquidated this March, amounted to 1.0039 trillion won, with a net internal rate of return (Net IRR) of 29.8%. The performance fee earned by Atinuminvest from this was 218.7 billion won.

Atinuminvest is accelerating the scaling up of its funds. The firm’s funds have grown in size from the Atinum Growth Investment Association 2018 (350 billion won), to the Atinum Growth Investment Association 2020 (550 billion won), and now the Atinum Growth Investment Association 2023 (860 billion won). The company’s current AUM is 1.86 trillion won (cumulative 2.4856 trillion won), placing it at the top tier domestically. Most recently, Atinuminvest was selected as the only VC general partner (GP) in the “Ecosystem-wide & Large League” indirect investment under the National Growth Fund and is now preparing to launch a super-sized megafund of up to 1 trillion won in the second half of this year.

It is not only the size of the funds that has grown. After launching the Atinum Growth Investment Association 2023, Atinuminvest distributed more than 35% of the paid-in principal to limited partners (LPs) within just two years and six months. Last year alone, the company recorded over 300 billion won in exits, ranking first among Korean venture capital funds for exit proceeds.

Three-Man Representative System... From Series A to Pre-IPO

An organizational system is also in place to operate these massive funds with precision. Atinuminvest is currently run by three co-representatives: Shin Gi-cheon, Lee Seung-yong, and Maeng Dujin. Shin provides overall business direction, Lee is in charge of overseas investment and global fundraising, while Maeng oversees domestic investments and the deep tech sector—an efficient triangular command structure.

Through this structure, Atinuminvest invests broadly across all stages of growth, from Series A through Pre-IPO, targeting promising companies in deep tech sectors such as artificial intelligence (AI), semiconductors, bio/healthcare, services, and games/content. In deep tech, there is Exina and Holiday Robotics; in bio, Nexi; and in platform and content, companies like Gangnam Unni (Gangnam Sister), Bunjang (BunJang Marketplace), Blast, and The Grim Entertainment are emerging as key portfolio companies, all benefitting from Atinum’s systematic value-up support.

However, there are risk factors associated with scaling up the funds. These include pressure to deploy large amounts of capital in a timely fashion, as well as volatility in returns depending on the performance of single-fund portfolios. Notably, as investments have recently concentrated in AI and deep tech sectors, concerns have arisen over the possibility of bubbles. This underscores the need for Atinuminvest to manage risks when handling large-scale capital deployment.

An Atinuminvest representative remarked, “What matters with large-scale funds is the ability to continuously demonstrate a virtuous cycle—from major fundraising to bold follow-up investments, then to firm exits and LP distributions. Having achieved the number one ranking in exits last year, we will continue to prioritize stability in managing these large funds.”

<To Be Continued>

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