Korea's data solution provider for small biz becomes unicorn

Korea Credit Data (KCD), a South Korean data solutions provider for small business owners, has become a Korean unicorn, or an unlisted company with more than 1 trillion won in corporate value.

With a valuation of 1.1 trillion won ($780.1 million), KCD has attracted a 35 billion won investment from strategic investors including Korea’s leading mobile carrier LG Uplus, the data solution firm said on Oct. 6.

Established in April 2016, KCD has received a combined 160 billion won of investments so far from Korean strategic investors such as GS Holdings, Kookmin Bank, Shinhan Card Co., Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance Co. and Kakao Ventures Corp.

The data solution firm is also backed by some global venture capital firms, such as Singaporean sovereign wealth fund Temasek Holdings’ VC firm Pavilion Capital and Korea’s Kunicorn Investment, a VC focused on pre-unicorn companies.

KCD is providing business management services to small business owners and self-employed workers. 

The startup is known for Cash Note, a productivity app that manages business financials such as income, rent, salary and tax. The app is used by more than 1.2 million small enterprises in Korea, offering them information on banking and financial policies as well as connecting users online for business tips.

In addition to Cash Note, KCD also provides point-of-sale (POS) systems, business-to-business food supply services and other data solutions that track and analyze the cash flow of businesses.

The firm and its five subsidiaries are offering their services to a total of 1.7 million enterprises across Korea, which is equivalent to 88% of the country’s credit card merchants as of end-2021.

Write to Jung-Rak An at jran@hankyung.com
Jihyun Kim edited this article.