IEL Science Establishes New Subsidiary 'Horizon IM'... "Expanding Investment in Mobility and Aerospace Sectors"

IL Science has established a new technology investment company and is expanding its investments in promising companies in the aerospace sector, including mobility, space communication, space exploration, and space all-solid-state batteries.

IL Science announced on the 15th that it has established a new technology business finance company (New Technology Financial Company, NTFC) called Horizon IM and completed registration for new technology finance business with the Financial Supervisory Service. The established capital is 10.1 billion KRW, with IL Science as the largest shareholder, and its consolidated subsidiary IL Mobility also participated in the investment.

NTFCs are specialized credit finance companies that invest in small and venture companies developing or commercializing technologies, and they receive various tax benefits. Compared to investing as a general corporation, they have the advantage of being able to scale up and implement more flexible strategies.

Horizon IM will be led by CEO Min Kyung-chul, who has 30 years of experience in the venture capital (VC) industry. CEO Min previously participated in the acquisition of Aitronics, which operates next-generation intelligent transportation systems (C-ITS) and autonomous driving businesses, together with IL Science in 2021.

Horizon IM is expected to serve as the corporate venture capital (CVC) arm of the IL Group. IL Science has strengthened its value chain in the mobility sector through an active mergers and acquisitions (M&A) strategy. With the establishment of this NTFC, its expertise is expected to be further enhanced, and investment opportunities in promising companies are anticipated to expand.

In addition, synergy creation is expected through market information and technology exchanges with IL Cellion, a patent-based technology company acquired last month, as well as with IL Science and IL Mobility.

An IL Science official stated, “With the establishment of this NTFC, we have secured broader participation opportunities for discovering and investing in promising companies in the mobility and aerospace sectors. We will actively pursue investment destinations and new business development to strengthen the value chain and competitiveness within the IL Group.”