Stonebridge Ventures: "Record-Breaking Harvest Season... Beginning of a Major Exit Cycle"

S2W, Nota, and Livesmed Achieve Consecutive Successes
Momentum Builds for All-Around Exits in AI, Biotech, and Mezzanine Next Year

Stonebridge Ventures, a domestic venture capital (VC) firm, has entered a full-scale big cycle of investment returns based on a diversified portfolio that includes artificial intelligence (AI), biotech, and mezzanine investments in listed companies.

On November 5, Stonebridge Ventures announced, "By October this year, the amount recovered has already surpassed last year's annual recovery performance. If the lock-up (mandatory holding commitment) shares of already-listed portfolio companies and the recovery contributions from companies about to go public are reflected, it is highly likely that we will achieve the highest annual recovery performance ever."

Stonebridge Ventures is executing large-scale exits through a variety of methods, including initial public offerings (IPOs), secondary sales, and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) across multiple sectors, such as AI.

In the AI value chain, NewN.AI, S2W, and Nota have gone public, with Stonebridge Ventures having completed or currently in the process of recovering its investments. Notably, S2W and Nota achieved partial exits at multiples of 21 times and 65 times, respectively, compared to their initial investment valuations. After its IPO on November 3, Nota's stock price surged to the daily upper limit for three consecutive days, rising five to six times above the offering price. Given that Stonebridge Ventures has invested over 300 billion won in AI sector portfolios, expectations for future returns are even higher.

Outside of AI, Green Optics (defense industry) and Livesmed (medical devices) are on the verge of going public. A Stonebridge Ventures representative stated, "Livesmed holds the largest equity stake among financial investors (FIs). If the upper end of the IPO price range is applied, the exit could be at a multiple of 50 times the initial investment valuation, promising substantial distributions to our limited partners."

Additionally, Clobot (robotics) and Onconic Therapeutics (biotech) have completed exits following their listings on KOSDAQ. Mezzanine investments in listed companies with global market expansion potential, such as Alteogen (biotech) and HYBE (entertainment), are also expected to generate significant returns. Through secondary sales, such as the sale of Healing Paper, the operator of the beauty platform Gangnam Unni, and M&A deals like the sale of Renew Energy Chungbuk, Stonebridge Ventures has achieved continuous exit results by selecting the most suitable exit strategies for each portfolio company.

The amount of recoveries next year is also expected to increase significantly compared to this year. IPOs and secondary sale events are anticipated across a variety of sectors, including AI, biotech, advanced manufacturing, and platforms. Yoo Seungwoon, CEO of Stonebridge Ventures, stated, "This big cycle of exits is not a one-off event, but rather evidence that a structurally repeatable investment and exit model is working. We will strive to deliver overwhelming fund performance and enhance corporate value."