Korea’s wealth fund bets on metaverse, AI startups

South Korea's $200-billion sovereign wealth fund plans to boost investments in Silicon Valley startups as it looks to the metaverse and artificial-intelligence to accelerate its expansion in alternative assets.

Seoungho Jin, who took over the reins of Korea Investment Corp in mid2021, also has his eyes on hotels, which he sees as a good play on the global recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.

Jin is looking beyond the recent downturn in listed technology stocks and the wider risks to the sector this year from the Federal Reserve driving interest rates higher. He sees alternative assets accounting for about 25 per cent of KIC's portfolio by 2025, versus around 17 per cent last year, and assets under management eventually rising to $300 billion.

"Some investors say Silicon Valley is already saturated, which I have to concede is partly true, but it is still a source of global growth," Jin, 59, said in an interview in Seoul. "There are still plenty of good opportunities, if you chase them eagerly."

KIC has almost doubled in size over the past five years, after a slow start when it was created in 2005 to increase national wealth and contribute to the nation's finance industry. The fund, which only invests outside of South Korea, has yet to release its results for 2021.