South Korean private equity firm UCK Partners has reportedly amassed about 1 trillion won ($768 million) for its third fund, while loan comparison platform Finda raised $37 million in a Series C round.
UCK Partners said to have raised $768m for Fund III
South Korean private equity firm UCK Partners has reportedly amassed about 1 trillion won ($768 million) for its third fund across two incremental closes.
The most recent close came at the end of July, per an AVCJ report. The capital raised so far has surpassed the firm’s reported target of up to 900 billion won.
UCK Partners was formerly the South Korea investment division of Japan-based mid-cap manager Unison Capital.
UCK Partners declined to comment on the fundraising, adding that the firm is no longer an affiliate of Unison Capital after its rebranding.
Established in 2014, UCK Partners closed its first fund at 308 billion won a year later. The second fund raised 500 billion won in 2019.
The firm invests across the healthcare, consumer and B2B service sectors. Its latest deal was an investment in dental implant developer and manufacturer Osstem Implant in February this year.
Meanwhile, it also had a 2.5 trillion won exit from dental scanner developer Medit Corporation to MBK Partners in March.
UCK’s current portfolio includes fashion and cosmetics retailer DHOLIC COMMERCE, frozen food firm Umji Food, specialty coffee bean importer and distributor TERAROSA, and omni-channel fresh produce platform Oasis, among others.
Its exits, in addition to Medit, are specialty cheese manufacturer Rosen Food, food and ingredients importer Gourmet F&B, wedding hall operator Apelgamo and bubble tea chain Gong cha.
Japan-based Unison Capital was founded in 1998. Its latest funds are the fifth flagship fund which was closed at 71 billion yen in 2021, and a 30 billion yen co-investment vehicle closed last year.
In 2021, Unison Capital told Nikkei Asia it was planning a $500-million fund for the India market.
Finda raises $37m in Series C funding
South Korean loan comparison platform Finda raised $37 million in a Series C funding round, according to a LinkedIn post shared by the company.
JB Financial Group and 500 Global invested in the company. Jeonbuk Bank, a subsidiary of JB Financial Group acquired a 10% stake in the fintech while the parent company acquired a 5% stake.
Finda plans to use the new funding to offer new products, to instal an artificial intelligence fraud transaction detection system (AI-FDS), and a specialised alternative credit rating model, reported Fintech Futures.
Finda is a loan comparison platform that allows customers to inquire about optimal loan conditions within 5 minutes by linking a joint certificate. The firm claims to provide customers with over 300 loan products in partnership with 62 financial companies.