[비즈한국] Venture capital (VC) firm NXVP has launched full-scale investment activities. NXVP is a company originally established in 2017 by Nexon’s holding company, NXC, but subsequently closed. After shutting down less than a year after its inception, NXVP reopened in January of this year. The entity that invested to re-establish NXVP was not NXC, but Wise Kids, a company owned by the late Nexon founder Kim Jung-ju’s family. Wise Kids is owned equally by the late founder’s two daughters, Kim Jung-min (23) and Kim Jung-yoon (21). As NXVP recently made its first corporate investment, attention is turning to the future moves of both Wise Kids and the two sisters.
On the 16th, it was revealed that Wise Kids engaged in a transaction worth 2.7 billion KRW in beneficiary certificates with NXVP. According to a filing with the Financial Supervisory Service, the beneficiary certificates into which Wise Kids injected capital are part of the ‘NXVP Deep Tech Investment Fund No. 1,’ with the transaction intended for investment in promising venture companies.
NXVP was a venture investment firm established by NXC in September 2017. NXC founded NXVP with a capital of 20 billion KRW, but abruptly dissolved it in November 2018, less than a year later. NXC cited the inability to find a replacement for the then-CEO Kim Jun-woo, who had resigned, as the reason for the closure.
However, NXVP reopened in January of this year. In the re-establishment process, the investor was not NXC, but the limited liability company Wise Kids. Wise Kids is a family company 100% owned by the two daughters of the late Nexon founder Kim Jung-ju, and as of the end of June, it holds a 1.69% stake in NXC. The executive manager of Wise Kids is Kim Hoe-seok, a non-executive director at NXC.
While Wise Kids was originally a company engaged in doll and toy manufacturing as well as education-related publishing and consulting, it shifted its business focus to corporate investment in July last year. Wise Kids added new purposes to its articles of incorporation, including securities investment, M&A brokerage, consulting and investment, and the provision of corporate consulting and advisory services.
Following the business shift, the two children of the late founder sold their NXC shares and carried out a paid-in capital increase of 320 billion KRW at Wise Kids. The funds raised were loaned to their mother, NXC Chairman Yoo Jung-hyun (56), to pay inheritance taxes. Chairman Yoo provided 226,000 common shares of NXC as collateral. As a result, Wise Kids' total assets increased more than threefold in one year, from 146.6 billion KRW at the end of 2023 to 502.2 billion KRW at the end of 2024. Non-current assets, including real estate, investment assets, and equipment, amount to 459.1 billion KRW, while current assets, including cash equivalents, amount to 43.1 billion KRW.
With NXVP as a subsidiary, Wise Kids has officially entered the investment business. In April, Wise Kids invested approximately 19 billion KRW into NXVP through a paid-in capital increase, securing a 95% stake. NXVP was established with a capital of 20.5 billion KRW and is located at the same address as Wise Kids. NXVP’s business objectives include new technology financing, investment and lending for venture companies, corporate restructuring, operation and management of M&A investment funds, and investment in private equity firms. Park Sung-hoon, formerly a partner at Daeju Accounting Corporation, was appointed as the first CEO.
In July, NXVP obtained a license as a new technology business finance company under the Credit Specialized Financial Business Act. This license refers to a financial business that provides comprehensive support, such as fund management and management guidance, to companies that have potential but lack capital and management foundations. It also manages and operates funds by establishing investment pools.
NXVP recently caught the market's attention by conducting its first investment. It is known that NXVP participated in the Series B funding round for DSRV, a domestic blockchain infrastructure firm. Founded in 2019, DSRV provides services such as virtual asset custody and stablecoin solutions, and it received a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) license in September 2024. It is also the founding chair company of the Korea Stablecoin Association.
Regarding future business direction, NXVP CEO Park Sung-hoon explained, “NXVP intends to focus on future new technology business sectors by utilizing its rich investment experience and network. We are reviewing investments in various fields, including content, media, and entertainment, medical and healthcare, K-beauty, and consumer goods, in addition to the crypto and blockchain sectors we have already invested in.”
Meanwhile, NXVP stated to Bizhankook, “NXVP is a new technology finance company that raises funds from external investors to invest in new technology companies, and it is operated independently from Wise Kids.”
In addition to NXVP, Wise Kids has a subsidiary called NX Properties (100% stake), which is a real estate leasing company. NX Properties owns the 313 Building in Sinsa-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, where both NXVP and Wise Kids are located. As of 2024, it recorded 1.1 billion KRW in revenue and 2.5 billion KRW in net profit.
Furthermore, with Wise Kids beginning investment operations, attention is also on whether the late founder’s children will engage in active management. Wise Kids and its subsidiaries are personnel-linked, with key NXC board members serving as registered directors. In the case of NXVP, Non-Executive Director Kim Hoe-seok chairs the board, and NXC Executive Director Kwon Young-min serves as an auditor. Director Kwon also concurrently serves as an executive manager at NX Properties. However, NXC clarified that "NXVP is a separate legal entity and not an affiliate."