Local Growth Fund No. 3, 'Daejeon D-Growth Fund', Launched

Mother Fund Formed With Total Capital of 54 Billion Won Including Korea Fund of Funds
Venture Fund Valued at 80 Billion Won to Be Created Through Mother Fund Investments

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced on October 1, 2026, that the Daejeon Venture Mother Fund, which focuses on investments in Daejeon Metropolitan City, has completed recruiting limited partners (LPs) and will begin its operation. This marks the third such Local Growth Fund formed after the ones in North Jeolla Province and Ulsan.

On this day, the inauguration ceremony for the 'Daejeon D-Growth Fund' was held at the Daejeon Startup Park headquarters in Yuseong-gu, Daejeon. In the second part of the event, corporate presentations (IR) and one-on-one investment consultations were held for promising companies in Daejeon, covering sectors such as semiconductors, bio, and drones.

The D-Growth Fund is being established as a mother fund totaling 54 billion won, with 35 billion won from the Korea Fund of Funds as the seed investment and the remainder contributed by local community members. Investors include Daejeon Metropolitan City, Daejeon Investment Finance, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), IBK Industrial Bank of Korea, Hana Bank, NH Nonghyup Bank, Happiness Energy, GNsoft, and other regional companies, banks, and universities.

The Local Growth Funds already established in North Jeolla and Ulsan are expected to announce sub-fund investment opportunities at the end of this month. The Local Growth Fund for Daegu–Gyeongbuk Region will establish its mother fund at the end of October, and the Southwest Region Local Growth Fund will do so in early November, with plans to announce their sub-fund investments within this year.

This 'Daejeon D-Growth Fund' will determine investment areas through a management committee consisting of Korea Venture Investment Corp., local governments, and key investors. Starting at the end of this month, sub-fund investments will begin, with plans to create a venture fund totaling approximately 80 billion won. After Daejeon City was selected for the 'Startup City Development Project' in April, a special startup city fund will also be established to support startup companies centered around KAIST.

Korea Venture Investment Corp. plans to gradually expand regional investment centers to foster the local venture investment ecosystem, and is preparing to open the 'Korea Venture Investment Central Region Investment Center' within this year. The Central Region Investment Center will serve as a venture investment hub for the central area with Daejeon at its core. It will manage the 'Daejeon D-Growth Fund' and other Local Growth Funds for the region, thereby enhancing local companies' access to investment.

Mok Seunghwan, Head of Startup Venture Innovation Office at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, stated, "Daejeon, with the Daedeok Innopolis at its core, is a leading hub for science and technology innovation with distinguished research institutions. The ministry will actively support the creation of deep-tech unicorn companies by leveraging Daejeon's scientific and technological capabilities through the 'Daejeon D-Growth Fund.'"

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