habit forming app
Scope
Date
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E-commerce
Live commerce app Grip aims to take over the world via shopping
There's an app where users can shop as if they're video chatting with their friends. How does this work? A seller will introduce products via livest...
Apr 14, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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E-commerce
Kakao to buy fashion app, pushing aside eBay Korea
Kakao Corp., South Korea's top mobile messaging app operator, is set to acquire a majority stake in Zigzag, a domestic online fashion platform targe...
Apr 08, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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E-commerce
Sale of Korea’s No.2 delivery app Yogiyo kicks off with May 4 prelim bid
The sale of South Korea’s second-largest food delivery app Yogiyo has kicked off with the sell-side issuing an information memorandum to poten...
Apr 07, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Digital contents
Kakao in talks to buy US fiction app in heated IP rivalry
South Korea's mobile giant Kakao Corp. is in negotiations to buy the management rights of US-based mobile fiction startup Radish Fiction for around ...
Apr 04, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Revenue club
Korea’s top delivery app operator Woowa joins 1 trillion won sales club
Woowa Brothers Corp., the operator of South Korea’s top food delivery app Baedal Minjok, commonly known as Baemin, has joined the 1 trillion w...
Mar 31, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Venture capital
KTB Network wins jackpot from Korean delivery app sale
KTB Network Co., a South Korean venture capital firm, has pocketed a double-digit return, or 62.5 billion won ($55 million) from the sale of its sta...
Mar 30, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Mergers & Acquisitions
Delivery Hero kicks off sale of S.Korea's No.2 delivery app Yogiyo
Germany-based online food delivery service Delivery Hero SE has kicked off the sale process of South Korea's second-largest food delivery app, Yogiy...
Mar 16, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Metaverse
Avatar app Zepeto becomes playground for MZers
The Blackpink House is a bucket list destination for fans of the K-pop girl group Blackpink. The house is decorated with images of the group, curren...
Mar 04, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Hydrogen economy
Hyundai Heavy, Aramco form global hydrogen partnership
South Korea’s Hyundai Heavy Industries Holdings Co. and Saudi Aramco have agreed to launch a hydrogen partnership in a step toward building a ...
Mar 03, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Mergers & Acquisitions
Naver invests €115 mn in Spain’s virtual marketplace Wallapop
Naver Corp., South Korea’s top online portal, has invested €115 million in Wallapop, a Spanish virtual marketplace, as part of its effort...
Feb 25, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Wealth donations
Founder of Korea’s top delivery app Baemin to donate over half his wealth
Kim Bong-jin, founder of South Korea’s top food delivery app Baedal Minjok, or Baemin in short, has committed to donating more than half of hi...
Feb 18, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Mergers & Acquisitions
Match Group buys Korean video chat startup for $1.73 bn
Match Group, the operator of the world’s largest dating app Tinder, has agreed to buy 100% of South Korea’s leading video chat startup...
Feb 10, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean startups
Live commerce app Grip posts over $22 mn in transactions
South Korea-based live commerce app Grip saw its cumulative transaction amount surpass 24 billion won ($22.2 million), just two years after its ince...
Jan 05, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Venture Capital
KB Investment, RM Global to form $100 mn bio VC fund
KB Investment Co. will join forces with US-based RM Global Partners to launch a $100 million life science fund to invest in early stage startups in ...
Dec 09, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)
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Tech, Media & Telecom
Naver, Kakao unsettled by Google's in-app payment policy
Global tech giant Google’s in-app payment policy has been coolly received by South Korea’s leading platform companies, fueling criticism...
Nov 25, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)
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Pre-IPOs
Anchor Equity, TPG invest $500 mn in Korean mobile banking app
Hong Kong-based Anchor Equity Partners has agreed to invest 250 billion won ($226 million) to buy new shares in South Korea’s KakaoBank, shortly...
Nov 17, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)
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Webtoons
Kakao webtoon platform Piccoma becomes No.1 grossing app worldwide
Kakao Corp., South Korea's platform giant, announced on Nov. 9 that its webtoon (digital comics) platform Piccoma has become the No. 1 grossing mobile...
Nov 09, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)
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Pre-IPOs
TPG to invest $222 mn in mobile banking app KakaoBank
TPG will acquire a 2.7% stake in South Korea’s mobile banking app KakaoBank for 250 billion won ($222 million) ahead of an initial public offeri...
Oct 27, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)
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Pension funds
NPS forms co-investment partnership with Dutch pension
The National Pension Service has formed a strategic alliance with Dutch pension fund manager APG, through which they recently made co-investments in A...
Oct 20, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)
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IPOs
Korea’s mobile banking app KakaoBank to push for 2021 IPO
KakaoBank Corp., the mobile banking arm of South Korea’s online messaging app operator Kakao Corp., is planning an initial public offering next ...
Sep 23, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)
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Tech
S. Korea's Kakao Work to rival Slack, messenger platform apps
Kakao Enterprise Corp., the artificial intelligence service unit of South Korea’s Kakao Corp., has launched a business messenger platform to com...
Sep 16, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)
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Tech
Korean display makers poised to suffer from US ban on Chinese app WeChat
Korea’s two largest display panel makers – Samsung Display Co. and LG Display Co. – are widely expected to suffer from the US ban on...
Sep 14, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean startups
Korean last-mile delivery apps’ valuations out of sync with demand surge
South Korea’s leading last-mile delivery startups have put their shares or management rights up for sale, riding on the surging demand for deliv...
Sep 10, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)
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Private equity
KIC forms $400 mn joint venture with NongHyup for private equity co-investment
Korea Investment Corporation (KIC) has announced a $400 million joint venture with NongHyup, or the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation, to...
Jul 13, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)
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Sovereign wealth fund
KIC to form alternatives joint fund with Korea’s NongHyup
Korea Investment Corporation (KIC) is preparing to launch a joint fund with NongHyup, or the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation, to invest i...
Jul 02, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)
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Pension fund
CalSTRS, POBA to form $312.5 mn JV for US multifamily investment: report
California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS) and Public Officials Benefit Association (POBA) will set up a $312.5 million joint ventur...
Feb 07, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)
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Startup
Goldman, GIC, Sequoia to exit from Korean food delivery app in $4 bn deal
Goldman Sachs, Singapore’s GIC and Sequoia Capital are among the financial investors set to secure handsome returns from a combined 506 billion ...
Dec 14, 2019 (Gmt+09:00)
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Startup
SK Group, Hillhouse Capital to form $850 mn fund to invest in Chinese start-ups
SK Group will set up a 1 trillion won ($850 million) fund with China’s private equity firm Hillhouse Capital Group to invest in Chinese start-up...
Dec 02, 2019 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean startups
App Doctor offers on-demand, hourly app service
For start-ups, applications are often a nuisance. Not only is it tough to develop one, but it's also a hassle to maintain and fix any issues. You're l...
Nov 29, 2019 (Gmt+09:00)
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POBA to form $750 mn joint property fund with Danish pension fund
The Public Officials Benefit Association (POBA) will launch a joint fund worth about 900 billion won ($753 million) with a Danish pension fund to inve...
Sep 19, 2019 (Gmt+09:00)