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Kakao Entertainment gains new investment fund as Saudi Arabia is betting big on the Hallyu Wave. It has earned KRW1.2 trillion or about $963 million in state funds as the kingdom decided to double down on its venture into the growing Korean content business.
Kakao Entertainment was able to raise KRW600 billion in funds by issuing new shares through a third-party allotment to two global state funds and these are the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation and the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, the country’s sovereign wealth fund that was founded in 1971.
Saudi’s PIF is said to be one of the largest state-owned investment funds in the world. The kingdom’s Crown Prince and Prime Minister, Mohammed bin Salman, is serving as its head.
As per The Korea Herald, the investment is the largest-ever amount that has been given to a content company in South Korea. The prince has been investing in new tech industries to expand the state fund’s portfolio to minimize its heavy dependence on oil revenue.
In fact, aside from Kakao Entertainment, PIF is said to be showing interest in other Korean entertainment and technology firms. It has already invested more than KRW3 trillion in gaming developers - NCSoft and Nexon as well.
PIF’s latest investment in NCSoft made it the second-largest shareholder in the company. Nexon, it holds the fourth largest share as listed on the Tokyo stock exchange. The fund decided to invest in Korean content and entertainment because they have proven to be very strong even in the face of economic downturns. This is very apparent in the continuous popularity of K-pop and K-dramas around the world.
“It is significant that we were able to secure funds of this scale at a time when both the Korean and global markets face a lot of uncertainty and investment sentiment is weaker,” Kakao Corporation’s chief investment officer and executive vice president, Bae Jae Hyun, said in a statement.
He added, “This is a testament to the global competitiveness and future growth potential of Kakao Entertainment’s unique Intellectual Property value chain, which spans multiple categories in the entertainment industry.”
