LB Investment CI.

This article was published on May 19, 2025, at 4:47 p.m. on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove site.

Domestic large venture capital (VC) firm LB Investment, with assets under management (AUM) exceeding 1 trillion won, is on the verge of establishing its largest venture fund to date. It garnered over 300 billion won in fundraising in about eight months, leveraging a mandatory investment of 20 billion won from the management company (GP).

According to the VC industry on the 19th, LB Investment recently concluded funding for a new venture fund tentatively named 'LB Next Future Fund' and plans to hold a general meeting by the end of this month. The pledged amount is expected to exceed 300 billion won, making it the largest venture fund since the 'LB Next Unicorn Fund,' which was established in 2020 with 310.6 billion won.

LB Investment secured KDB Industrial Bank as an anchor LP last September, which kickstarted its funding efforts. LB Investment challenged the mid-sized sector in the 'AI Korea Fund' investment project, for which KDB Industrial Bank allocated 60 billion won out of a minimum fund size of 200 billion won and was ultimately selected as the final GP.

Subsequently, LB Investment swept venture fund investment projects from large pension funds and mutual aid associations, often referred to as 'big players' in the capital market. It obtained GP qualifications from institutions like the Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance Fund, Korea Federation of Small and Medium Enterprises, National Pension Service, Korea Post, and Military Mutual Aid Association, already raising a minimum fund size exceeding 200 billion won by the end of last year.

LB Investment's emphasis on so-called 'responsible investment' has reportedly received high praise from LPs. LB Investment proposed an amount of 20 billion won as 'GP Commit,' which is 10% of the minimum fund size, while embarking on the investment project. GP Commit refers to the capital that the GP inputs when forming the fund.

In the past, the GP Commit was typically around 1% of the total pledge amount, but recent discussions have seen that figure increase to 3-5%. This change is due to a rising demand for responsible investment, where GPs share in investment losses in the event of a failure. LB Investment has set its GP Commit at 10%.

Positive investment performance has also played a role. LB Investment has adopted a 'full-cycle investment' strategy, continuing with additional investments after the initial ones, discovering companies such as Pearl Abyss, Kakao Games, and ably. The 'Future Creation LB Leading Company Investment Fund' recorded an internal rate of return (IRR) of 17%.

LB Investment is expected to allocate around 6% as GP Commit for the LB Next Future Fund, as it has been successful in securing investors, raising the fund size to over 300 billion won. This year, it has also sought to further challenge a VC investment project from the National Credit Union Federation, adding 20 billion won in funds.

LB Investment plans to expand investments in the 'converged AI' sector, including AI infrastructure, robotics, and autonomous driving through the LB Next Future Fund. The strategy of maintaining a full-cycle investment from initial to follow-up investments will remain in place. The fund manager for the LB Next Future Fund will be Ki-Ho Park, the CEO of LB Investment.

Meanwhile, LB Investment's AUM is set to exceed 1.5 trillion won next month. LB Investment started as LG Venture Investment in 1996 and has been independent since it was spun off from the LG Group in 2000. As of March, it was managing a total of 12 funds with an AUM of 1.2061 trillion won.