Hong Kong’s Media Asia, Korean talent management group SM Entertainment and Taiwan’s Kbro Media have established a fund for joint investment in film and TV production aimed at Chinese-speaking audiences.
The fund, called the Dragon Tiger Fund, is launching with seed capital of $20m and aims to raise an initial $100m. Media Asia and SM Entertainment will serve as co-managers with Kbro Media parent company Fubon Group as co-founder.
The agreement was signed at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing yesterday, by Media Asia chairman Peter Lam, SM Entertainment chairman Lee Shoo Man and Kbro Media chairman Leon Lu.
It was also agreed that Media Asia would serve as the exclusive Chinese agent for SM Entertainment’s artists, including singer Jang Ri-in and K-pop bands Super Junior, f(x) and EXO.
The agreement is part of a growing trend for East Asian countries to work together to gain a foothold in the booming mainland China market. Earlier this year, Fubon and Kbro acquired a 14% stake in Media Asia.
Last month, another Korean artist management company, Keyeast, secured funding from Chinese internet portal Sohu, also with a view to launching Korean talent in the mainland China market.