CrunchBase has partnered with Korean startup database RocketPun.ch to showcase startups from Seoul and the broader South Korean marketplace.
RocketPun.ch, launched in January 2013, also provides a job platform with the goal to connect Korean talent to a broader global tech market. More than 1,200 startups have registered, posting 50 open job positions every week according to Minhee Cho, CEO of Rocketpun.ch.
In a country with deep penetration of smartphones and high speed LTE access, whose capital boasts a population of more than 15M, there is a big opportunity to provide mobile services to this geographically concentrated population. In Silicon Valley the population is 3.5 to 4M by comparison.
On TechCrunch, Sebastian Park writes about the developing tech scene in South Korea with news of smartphone messaging & games platform Kakao Talk‘s plans to merge with Daum, the largest South Korean Internet portal, later this year. Additionally, fast growing e-commerce company Coupang is slated to go public late this year.
Concurrent with Silicon Valley, there are interesting startups in the mobile delivery space. Woowa Brothers, with its app Baedalui Minjok, is a food delivery service that recently received $12M in funding in March 2014 from CyberAgent Ventures, Altos Ventures and IMM Investment. Other delivery apps which are taking off are Yogiyo, a local restaurant delivery and ordering platform; Stonykids, which allows one to discover local shops, order and get delivery; and finally Hey! Bread, a popular Korean bread delivery service.
The most active investors in the region based on the number of investments in CrunchBase include Samsung Ventures, Softbank Ventures, D.CAMP, Stonebridge capital and K Cube Ventures.
Rocketpun.ch has partnered from the start with the top 3 South Korean tech news sites VentureSquare, Platum and beSUCCESS. They are supported by both the Korean Government’s Small and Medium Business Administration (SMBA) and Seoul National University Techno Holdings.
Image by Clint Sharp/Flickr
