The National Participation Growth Fund, launched by the government to encourage public investment in venture capital, sold out during its initial offering. However, the investment has been predominantly from individuals in their 40s and 50s, with those in their 20s and 30s contributing only 13.4% of the total investment.
According to data submitted by the Financial Services Commission to Kim Sang-hoon, a lawmaker from the People Power Party, a total of 30,038 individuals subscribed to the first round of the National Participation Growth Fund in June, with total subscriptions amounting to approximately 598.9 billion won.
By age group, investors in their 50s contributed 231.6 billion won, accounting for 38.7% of the total, with 104.2 billion won from banks and 127.4 billion won from securities firms. Investors in their 40s added another 170.6 billion won, bringing the combined total for those in their 40s and 50s to 67% of the overall investment.
In contrast, the 20s and 30s demographic had 5,852 subscribers, contributing about 80.2 billion won, which represents only 13.4% of the total. The average investment per person was also lower for younger investors, with those in their 20s averaging 11.3 million won and those in their 30s averaging 11.9 million won, compared to 20.8 million won for those in their 50s and 23.4 million won for those in their 60s.
The lower participation from younger individuals is attributed to their relatively limited investment capacity and the fund's structure, which restricts early redemption for a five-year term.
The Financial Services Commission plans to launch a second round of the National Participation Growth Fund in September, with a target size of 600 billion won. They aim to increase the allocation for low-income individuals from 20% to 50%. Given that over 60% of the young subscribers in the first fund were from low-income backgrounds, this adjustment is expected to attract more young investors.
The commission is set to finalize the selection of fund management companies by mid-August and will begin public offerings in September. However, recent market volatility and the initial poor performance of the first fund could pose challenges for the second round's success.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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