South Korean gaming company Krafton, known for Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI), has launched a new India-focused Asian fund totalling up to ₹6,000 crore, established in partnership with NAVER and Mirae Asset.
The fund – titled the KRAFTON-NAVER-MIRAEASSET Unicorn Growth Investment Fund (Unicorn Growth Fund) is designed as a large-scale growth fund, and will target leading technology companies across Asia, with India at the center of its investment strategy.
The Unicorn Growth Fund is currently preparing for establishment in January next year. KRAFTON will contribute an initial investment of ₹1,230 crore, and together with the other two companies and external investors, the fund is expected to begin operations with a total size of over ₹3,000 crore. The fund is managed by Mirae Asset Venture India.
KRAFTON has invested over $200 million in several Indian startups across interactive entertainment, gaming, Esports, and technology, since 2021. KRAFTON actively supports India’s game development ecosystem through its KRAFTON India Gaming Incubator.
In India, KRAFTON is responsible for premier mobile games, including BATTLEGROUNDS MOBILE INDIA (BGMI), which has surpassed 240 million downloads, Bullet Echo India, Road To Valor: Empires, and CookieRun India, among others.
With a solid footing in the local market supported by the success of BATTLEGROUNDS MOBILE INDIA (BGMI), KRAFTON plans to leverage the experience it has accumulated in India to further expand its investment scope.
As part of its broader commitment to strengthening India’s gaming ecosystem, which is already underway through KRAFTON India Gaming Incubator (KIGI), this fund represents the next stage in that evolution. It allows KRAFTON to expand its focus beyond gaming, channeling capital into a wider set of promising Indian tech sectors.
By collaborating with NAVER, which demonstrates expertise in platform and content businesses, and Mirae Asset, which offers extensive capital management capabilities and a strong nationwide network in India, KRAFTON will scale up its investments in India’s promising tech companies and create long-term strategic synergy based on the combined strengths of the three companies.
Sean (Hyunil) Sohn, CEO, KRAFTON India, said, “We expect that the collaboration among Korea’s leading companies will generate meaningful synergies. Our participation in this fund aims to discover sustainable businesses in India that create social and economic value in addition to gaming. By exploring investment opportunities in various sectors such as consumer goods, sports, media and healthcare, we plan to position ourselves as a brand trusted by its people.”
Choi In-hyuk, President of Naver Tech Business, said, “We are pleased to pursue a strategic collaboration with KRAFTON, which has built a strong foundation in the Indian market. Leveraging Naver’s platform, content, and AI capabilities, we aim to jointly support the discovery of innovative Indian companies and contribute to the expansion of the local technology ecosystem.”
