'Investment in Hallyu on a Rise

Private equity funds are aggessively investing in special assets funds that invest in shipping, raw materials and cultural contents like movies and musicals.
The Korea Financial Investment Association said Tuesday,that the amount of money invested by private equity funds in so-called "special assets" such as products of cultural interesthas risen by more than 50-percent since 2009.

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"It's hard to divide Hallyu investments into specific groups, but it can be put in the category of special asset funds. Private equity special asset funds have increased from 9 billion dollars in latter half of 2009 to 14 billion dollars this year".

Funds related to Korean movies and soap operas were not that popular due to the high level of risk up until a few years ago, but times are changing thanks to the Hallyu, or Korean Wave.
Experts also point to the low profit margin of conventional investments during that period as one of the main factors that led the sharp increase in special asset funds.

"Conventional investments such as stocks and bonds didn't generate much profit in recent years, so many investors turned their eyes to alternative investments".

Investors also made active investments in real estate funds that are traditionally considered to be safe, with the money put in rising more than 7-billion dollars over the past 3 years.
Han Da-eun, Arirang News.