[StartupRecipe] 4 Korean Investment Trends: Data Analysis H1 2024

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#Weekly Funding Overview

[July. 1~ July. 5]

The total funds raised by Korean startups of the week is KRW 88.84 Billion.

Company	Inudustry	Amount	Round	Investors
Cartax	Mobility	-		KOSME
Sweetbio	Food	1.75 billion	Series B Bridge	Lotte ventures Japan
Charmacist	Healthcare	-	Grant	Scaleup TIPS
Pulsead	Retail media	-	Seed	Sparklab
Fabtamer	Materials	-	Grant	TIPS
Deepsmartech	Nano coating	4.3 billion	Pre-Series A	Magna Investments, GS Ventures, Capstone Partners, D-Camp, Big Bang Angels
Homes company	Proptech	-		Aqara life
SMIM	Fandom platform	-	Grant	TIPS
Inno space	Space	-	IPO	KOSDOQ
Ezmedibot	Healthcare	2 billion	Series A	ACE Investment
SNUAILAB	Vision AI	1.2 billion		iquest
CULTURE THINK	Artist service	2 billion		Sony music
Webaresoft	API Solution	-	Seed	Hanyang university holdings
Solarize	Solar energy	300 million		Jeonnam CCEI
Arch seoul	Digital solution	-	Series A	KDB Infrastructure Asset Management, Enlight Ventures
Mediver	Healthcare	-	Pre-Series A	Daegyo Investment
The hyoosik	Hotel solution	16 billion	Series B	TS Investment
Arontier	Bio	5 billion		HLB Group
Shunytech	ESG	-	Seed	MYSC
eROUN&Company	Gen AI	-	Grant	Deeptech TIPS
The stack	Piezo Actuator	4 billion	Seed	Mirae Asset Venture Investment, ETRI Holdings, BSK Investment
Korea credit data	Business management	50 billion		Hanwha life
Bonjac	Beauty brand	-		Vilablu
KMD	BIO	-	Grant	Deeptech TIPS
ALPES	Atomic layer processing	2 billion	Series A	JKP Partners
Theta one	Edutech	1 billion	Seed	The Ventures, Strong Ventures, Pareto Holdings, Angel Investors

#Major Funding

• Accommodation solution company The Hyoosik has secured a 16 billion won investment. The company has rebranded and managed operations for small and medium-sized hotels, with a cumulative record of managing 170 hotels.
• CultureThink, which supports artist activities, has received a 20 billion won strategic investment from Sony Music. CultureThink has previously planned the hip-hop based ‘Rap Beat Festival’ and plans to grow into a global agency with this investment.

#Trend Analysis

4 Korean Investment Trends: Data Analysis H1 2024

As the first half of 2024 concludes, an analysis of four key changes in the investment landscape compared to the previous year, based on data from Startuprecipe, reveals interesting trends.

1.Modest Growth in Total Investment

The total investment in the first half of 2024 reached KRW 2.595 trillion, a slight increase from KRW 2.458 trillion in the same period last year. Despite the number of large-scale investments (KRW 100 billion or more) more than doubling compared to 2023, the overall growth remained modest. This indicates a more balanced market, with active investments across early and mid-stage startups, rather than relying solely on a few large deals.

2.Shift in Investment Preferences

Significant increases were observed in sectors such as software, healthcare, and manufacturing. The software sector experienced a 2.8x increase in funding compared to 2023, driven by investor interest in AI-powered solutions. Manufacturing saw over 120% year-over-year growth, with increased focus on AI solutions for digital transformation and Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies such as batteries, space, and materials. In contrast, consumer tech and fintech experienced year-over-year declines, with only one company (MyRealTrip) ranking in the top 15 investments for H1 2024.

3. B2B Gains Traction Over B2C

The investment trend shifted noticeably from B2C to B2B. Consumer tech saw a 54.2% decrease in investments, while fintech experienced a 73.8% decrease. Conversely, software and manufacturing sectors saw significant increases. This shift reflects growing demand for solutions aiding companies in digital transformation and productivity improvement.

4. Increased Market Stability

The first half of 2024 demonstrated a more stable investment market compared to 2023. While 2023 saw fluctuations ranging from KRW 206.9 billion to KRW 746.3 billion, 2024 fluctuations were more contained, ranging from KRW 312.7 billion to KRW 519.2 billion. This reduced volatility suggests a more stable market without temporary overheating or downturns.

Outlook

While the investment market in H1 2024 shows improvement over the previous year, it has not reached the levels seen during the 2021-2022 investment boom. However, the upward trend at the close of H1 suggests a continued gradual recovery in the second half of the year. Investors and market observers will be watching closely to see if this positive momentum continues throughout the remainder of 2024.