Tel Aviv: In a boost to bilateral ties, South Korea selected OurCrowd, Israel's most active venture investor, to co-manage what will become a USD 80 million fund for DeepTech investments on Wednesday.

The fund, known as the NH-OC Global Open Innovation Fund, will focus on investing in approximately 25-30 startups. These startups will be from core technology sectors including semiconductors, robotics, automotive, quantum computing, cybersecurity, digital health, and more. This initiative aims to create a synergistic relationship between Israeli innovation and South Korean industrial prowess.

So far, USD 48 million has been secured by the Korean partners, NH Venture Investment and K-Growth. The Jerusalem-based OurCrowd is currently in the process of raising the remaining funds from its network of over 240,000 registered investors worldwide.

"The establishment of the Israel-Korea bilateral fund with the backing of the South Korean government is wonderful news for Israeli high-tech," said OurCrowd CEO Jon Medved.

"South Korea is looking at Israeli innovation to establish its position in the industries of the future that it strives to lead by the end of the decade and beyond. Apart from the fund's investments, Israeli DeepTech companies will receive direct access to the South Korean industrial giants and will be able to forge collaborations on a global scale, including in the Asia-Pacific markets. South Korean startups, on the other hand, will benefit from exposure to Israel's deep global connections to leading venture capital investors, entrepreneurs, and family offices, which will accelerate their access to foreign tech innovation ecosystems and much-needed capital," he explained.

K-Growth, an agency under the Korean Ministry of Trade Industry and Energy (MOTIE), has committed USD 32 million to the fund. It is one of Korea's largest financial agencies and plays a significant role in managing the government's strategic investment funds. The commitment marks one of K-Growth's largest international fund investments to date.

NH Venture Investment, the venture arm of NongHyup Financial Group, has contributed USD 16 million to the fund. NongHyup Financial Group ranks among the top five financial groups in South Korea, with assets exceeding USD 400 billion.

"K-Growth has established this fund to support the global expansion of Korean companies through open innovations with global high-tech enterprises such as innovative Israeli companies. We expect to find Israeli innovation through OurCrowd's extensive Israeli and Global network, to collaborate with Korean high-tech start-ups to grow together through this fund," said NH Venture Investment CEO Kim Hyun Jin.

(With Agency Inputs)