More than half of the companies that received venture investment in Korea last year were identified as late-stage startups founded more than seven years ago. To stimulate investment in early-stage startups, the government will more than double its Mother Fund contributions to the early-stage startup segment and create a dedicated fund of over KRW 333.3 billion.

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced on the 13th the “2025 Trends in Domestic Venture Investment and Fund Formation and Status of Unicorn Companies.” Last year, venture investment amounted to KRW 6.2088 trillion (45.6%) for companies founded within seven years and KRW 7.4156 trillion (54.4%) for companies founded more than seven years ago. Among startups, investment in early-stage startups within three years of founding remained at KRW 2.2666 trillion (16.6%). This represents an increase of about 1.9% from the previous year, but is relatively small compared with a 16.5% increase in investment over the same period in late-stage companies founded more than seven years ago. First Vice Minister of SMEs and Startups Noh Yong-seok explained, “The rising share of investment in late-stage companies and the declining share in early-stage startups appear to reflect a preference for investing in proven growth companies.”

The government plans to boost investment in early-stage startups by doubling its Mother Fund contributions to the early-stage startup segment compared with the previous year and creating a dedicated fund of more than KRW 333.3 billion. Of this, a KRW 50 billion tranche will be created as the “Startup Boom Fund” and will be intensively invested in early-stage startups selected through the “Startup for Everyone Project.”

The government also released last year’s status of domestic unicorn companies (unlisted companies that have achieved a corporate value of KRW 1 trillion or more). As of 2025, the number of domestic unicorns stands at 27, and it was found that it took an average of 7 years and 8 months from founding to growth into a unicorn. Four companies newly joined the ranks of unicorns last year: Rebellions, FuriosaAI, BeNow, and Galaxy Corporation.

Meanwhile, new venture investment last year totaled KRW 13.6 trillion, up KRW 1.7 trillion (14%) from the previous year. This is the second-highest level on record after KRW 15.9 trillion in 2021. Following 2021, venture investment declined to KRW 12.4706 trillion in 2022, KRW 10.9133 trillion, and KRW 11.9457 trillion in 2024, but is now showing a modest recovery. The number of venture investment deals also increased from 8,063 in 2021 to 8,542 in 2025.

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