[StartupRecipe] Korean Startup Funding Stabilizes in H1 2024

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#Weekly Funding Overview

[Aug. 19~ Aug. 23]

The total funds raised by Korean startups of the week is KRW 182.8 Billion.

Company	Inudustry	Amount	Round	Investors
shellpia	ESG	-	Grant	TIPS
Soyou F&B	Food	-	Grant	TIPS
Market Stadium	Proptech	1.5 billion	Pre-Series A	Laguna Investment, Lotte Ventures, Seoul techno holdings
Storelink	Ecommerce marketing platfrom	20 billion	Series C	SJ Partners, Partners Investment, Hana Ventures, KDB Development Bank, CJ Investment, Evergreen Investment Partners
ROOTRIX	Plant Platform	1.2 billion	Pre-Series A	Springcamp, Smilegate Investments, XPLOR INVESTMENT
Cubig	Data	-		Cnttech-DB
Finders	Insure tech	-	Grant	TIPS
Slogk	Fashion	-	Seed	Cnttech
Better works	Remote worker Recruit	-	Grant	TIPS
Metainnotech	Proptech	1 billion	Pre-Series A	Nautilus Investment
ailive	3D Content	-	Grant	Seoul TIPS
Payhere	POS Solution	15 billion	Series B2	Good water capital, SBVA
Leemobility	Safety infra solution	-	Seed	Blue Point Partners
Hurotics	Wearable robotics	3.5 billion	Pre-Series A	Ajou IB Investment, Wonik Investment Partners, KODIT
Naivy	Audio Creator economy	-	Pre-Series A	Content technologies
Amotravel	Travel	-	Grant	TIPS
Weflo	Mobility	2.5 billion	Pre-Series A Bridge	Stone Bridge Ventures, Lotte Ventures, Industrial Bank of Korea
Imeditech	Medical device	-	Grant	TIPS
Nexpot solution		-	Seed	Platinum Technology Investment
uglylab	Waste management	2.5 billion	Pre-Series A	Strong Ventures, Ascendo Ventures, MYSC
Dawnlike	Game	6 billion		webzen
Readi robust machine	Smart energy recovery solution	7.4 billion	Series A	Quantum Ventures Korea, Korea Development Bank, Strong Ventures, KIBO
KPIM		10 billion		Wonju city
Aftercompany	Omnichannel Cloud Management	-	Grant	TIPS
PIP Labs	IP Platform	109.2 billion	a16z, Polychain Capital, Samsung next, angel investor
Studiokico	Shared map	-	Seed	Strong Ventures, Xquared
Boostree partners	Beauty solution	-	Pre-Series A	Genaxis
Nutriadvisor	Beauty brand	-	Grant	TIPS
BCD Clinic	Bio	-	Grant	TIPS
PulseAd	Global Retail Media Platform	-		CJ ENM
Iskra	Blockchain	-		Coinbase Ventures, GSR, Planetarium Labs
Workvisa	Career matching	-	Pre-Seed	MYSC

#Major Funding

• PIP Labs, the developer of the intellectual property (IP) platform Story Protocol, has raised $80 million in investment and has been valued at 3 trillion KRW. The platform aims to help creators protect their IP and generate revenue, with a detailed business model set to be established.
• E-commerce marketing solution company Storelink has secured 20 billion KRW in investment. It analyzes e-commerce data to support data-driven decision-making in the open market business process. Following its expansion into Japan, Storelink is preparing to enter the U.S. market through Amazon and plans to invest in resources and manpower to strengthen its localization strategy for global business.
• POS solution company Payhere has raised 15 billion KRW in investment. Without the need to purchase a separate POS device, users can install the app on their own tablets, smartphones, or PCs. Payhere provides an all-in-one store management solution that integrates services like POS, kiosks, and table orders.

#Trend Analysis

Korean Startup Funding Stabilizes in H1 2024

The South Korean government has released a report on startup investment trends for the first half of 2024, revealing a 19% increase in investments compared to the same period last year. The report suggests a recovery trend across most sectors of the startup ecosystem.

An analysis of median and average investment values over the past three years, compiled by Startup Recipe, further supports the gradual recovery of the domestic investment market towards a healthier state.

In the seed stage, while the median investment value decreased from 1 billion won in 2022 to 600 million won in 2024, the number of deals increased from 42 to 52. This indicates a decline in company valuations but sustained investor interest in early-stage startups. The lower valuations may be attracting investors who see opportunities to invest in promising startups at more favorable prices.

The average investment amount in the seed stage saw a steeper decline, from 2.9 billion won in 2022 to 1.4 billion won in 2024. This suggests a coexistence of large and small investments, with investors likely diversifying risk by making smaller investments in a larger number of startups while still committing significant funds to select promising ventures.

The pre-Series A stage maintained a stable median investment of 2 billion won from 2022 to 2024. Despite a slight decrease in average values, this stage demonstrated a relatively stable investment environment.

Series A investments showed more noticeable changes. The median value slightly decreased from 6 billion won in 2022 to 5 billion won in 2024. However, the average investment size, after dropping to 6.3 billion won in 2023, rebounded to 7.8 billion won in 2024. The number of deals also recovered in 2024 after a significant decrease in 2023, indicating that large-scale investments in promising companies are still occurring.

The Series B stage witnessed even more substantial changes. The median value, which had fallen to 10.5 billion won in 2023, showed a V-shaped recovery to 15 billion won in 2024. The average value also recovered to 18.4 billion won in 2024, reaching 2022 levels. This suggests more uniform investments in growth-stage companies and continued large-scale funding for proven businesses.

These trends indicate a gradual recovery in market confidence, particularly for growth-stage companies that have demonstrated viable business models. The investment landscape appears to be stabilizing, with a healthy mix of cautious early-stage investments and more substantial commitments to proven startups in later stages.