[THE INVESTOR] SoftBank Ventures Korea, venture capital arm of the Japanese tech giant, on Sept. 20 said it has established a new US$300 million fund in partnership with TPG Growth to invest in promising startups in China. 

The new fund, called China Ventures Fund I, will target early-stage startups in China in areas of artificial intelligence, deep tech, media and contents, among others. 

The fund will be managed by JP Lee, CEO of SoftBank Ventures Korea and TPG Growth Managing Director Jason Ding. Ding is a Chinese venture capitalist who has invested in startups like UCloud, Mogujie and TanTan. 

“Utilizing SoftBank Group’s Chinese network, we will create innovation in the Chinese market and discover tech startups in their early stage that have global competitiveness,” said Lee. 

The latest fund brings SoftBank Venture’s total assets under management to 960 billion won (US$850 million).

By Ahn Sung-mi (sahn@heraldcorp.com)