[INTERVIEW] How one of Korea's oldest VCs prepares to chase next big opportunities

Chief managing director at Atinum Investment navigates Korea's dynamic startup ecosystem and its global potential

By Lee Yeon-woo

In 2009, Kim Che-uk, then a software engineer at Samsung Electronics, was invited to join a task force focused on developing the company's future revenue streams. Already feeling a lack of interest in his current position, Kim seized the opportunity. It introduced him to venture capital (VC) investment through engagement with global startups funded by Samsung Ventures.

Intrigued by the idea of applying his tech background to finance, Kim left Samsung a year later to join Atinum Investment, one of Korea's oldest VCs. What began as curiosity blossomed into a highly successful career, propelling him to the top of the industry and earning him recognition as its highest-paid individual.

When Kim joined Atinum, Korea’s software ecosystem was still in its infancy, forcing him to focus on hardware investments despite his expertise in software. However, soon in the early 2010s, the emergence of services targeting internet and mobile users sparked a wave of innovation. Unicorn startups like Baemin, Toss and Dunamu emerged during this time, and Kim was ready to seize the moment.

In 2016, he recognized Dunamu’s potential early on and made a bold investment, when the company’s valuation was just 50 billion won. The result was staggering returns of over 100 times the initial amount. He also placed early bets on other unicorns, including RIDI and Zigbang.

Now Atinum’s chief managing director, Kim believes the mobile innovation era has peaked.

"We are now witnessing a wave far greater than mobile. AI is reshaping everything on a fundamental level. This is not something that would last only a decade (as witnessed in the mobile wave). It could go decades," Kim said.

Beyond AI, the firm is also expanding its global presence. Though VC traditionally has a local focus reliant on building strong relationships with management teams, Atinum has reorganized its teams to focus on specific sectors while broadening their geographic scope.

"We recently reorganized teams so that each can focus on a specific field, narrowing down the sector further while expanding the geographic scope. The goal is to identify and invest in the best companies globally," Kim explained.

For example, Atinum’s software as a service (SaaS)-focused team oversees investments not just in Korea but also in the U.S., Japan and Southeast Asia. This approach enables the team to provide valuable insights to Japanese SaaS companies by leveraging the success of Korean firms expanding globally, with the same strategy being applied to Southeast Asia.

"This global approach significantly increases the potential for us to support and scale up the businesses we invest in," Kim said.

Among Atinum’s key priorities are B2B companies excelling on a global level.

"Korea’s platform sector, or B2C, has largely exhausted what VCs can do within individual verticals. However, I anticipate that several of these B2B companies will achieve unicorn status within the next year or two, particularly in tech, robotics, SaaS and AI. This is pivotal for both our investment outcomes and the broader Korean venture ecosystem," he said.

"Basically, we have to expand overseas with industries Korea excels in."

Kim also sees significant opportunities emerging from the growing number of Korean founders launching startups in the U.S.

"These days, many Korean founders are launching tech and SaaS companies in the U.S., which is incredibly promising. They are Korean, making it easy to build strong rapport, yet they operate globally from Day 1. It’s an opportunity we definitely don’t want to miss," Kim said.

At the same time, Atinum has been building its global networks, securing its first overseas funding from Singapore-based Vertex Holdings in September 2023. This funding was part of Atinum’s record-breaking 860 billion won venture fund — the largest in Korean VC history.

"While our fund was also backed by contributions from the National Pension Service and Korea Development Bank, scaling it further will inevitably require overseas investments. This makes Singapore a crucial strategic foothold, particularly from a fundraising perspective," Kim said. Atinum has operated an office in Singapore since 2021.

There are several major funds in the U.S. and Asia that have shown significant interest in Korea.

"Many foreign investors have already achieved substantial success in the B2C sector, benefiting from the market’s profitability, transparency and reliable returns. Such markets are rare, especially with China’s growing restrictions. On top of that, Korea is now seeing the rise of numerous promising B2B companies," Kim said.

Such interest led Atinum to actively consider co-investment opportunities with major funds in the U.S. and Asia.

"Our aim is to introduce these foreign funds to our portfolio companies, to those valued at over 500 billion won, and drive further growth together," he said.

Despite the "winter" currently chilling the startup investment market, Kim sees opportunities ahead.

"We’ve earned substantial profits from companies like Dunamu, but that wasn’t the end. We reinvested a significant portion of those gains back into the ecosystem," he said. "That’s what we need to keep doing — continuing to invest and build for the future."