Nexon Partners with Ministry to Launch $180 Million Fund for 'K-Game' Startups

Video game giant Nexon is stepping up to nurture South Korea's burgeoning game startup scene. In collaboration with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Nexon announced a significant five-year, 250 billion won ($180 million) investment program designed to bolster early-stage game developers.

This initiative comes at a critical time, as the domestic market for early-stage game investment has seen a considerable slowdown. Nexon aims to fill this funding gap and capitalize on the ongoing artificial intelligence transformation to secure globally competitive intellectual property (IP).

To manage this ambitious program, Nexon has established Nexon Partners. This entity is teaming up with Kona Venture Partners, a specialized venture capital firm, to launch a 120 billion won strategic fund. This fund incorporates a mix of private capital and public funds, including 60 billion won from the Ministry's fund-of-funds program. Nexon itself will contribute an additional 130 billion won directly, earmarked for subsequent growth investments.

Nexon Partners will be led by Lee Jung-hun, who also heads Nexon's Japanese operations. "The domestic early-stage game development market is currently facing a situation where even promising developers struggle to secure funding due to a decline in investment sentiment," Lee stated. "Through public-private cooperation, we will resolve the initial funding gap and operate a long-term ecosystem investment program to discover next-generation global IPs emerging from the AI transition."

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The domestic early-stage game development market is currently facing a situation where even promising developers struggle to secure funding due to a decline in investment sentiment. Through public-private cooperation, we will resolve the initial funding gap and operate a long-term ecosystem investment program to discover next-generation global IPs emerging from the AI transition.