Korean private equity firm VIG Partners is selling its controlling stake in funeral services firm Preed Life to Woongjin Group, a Korean conglomerate specialising in publishing and education, per a statement.
The investment in Preed Life is held through the 2016-vintage VIG Fund III and 2020-vintage VIG Fund IV. Last year, VIG sold a part of its holding in Preed Life to KKR, in a deal that valued the funeral services provider at 1 trillion won.
The complete sale marks the third full exit for its third fund and the first full exit for the fourth fund. VIG is expected to achieve more than a 4x return on invested capital, it said in the statement.
Following this transaction, VIG said it will accelerate the realisation of remaining investments across both funds.
“Anticipating the growing demand for professional funeral services driven by aging, VIG began building a funeral service platform in 2016 with the acquisition of Joun Life, followed by the acquisition of additional mid-sized funeral service companies,” the private equity firm said.
In 2020, it acquired Preed Life and subsequently merged four affiliated companies to establish the funeral service platform.
Combined with dividends received over the past twelve months, VIG expects the divestment to generate total proceeds of more than 1 trillion won ($697.6 million). VIG’s total proceeds, including prior refinancing and minority stake sales, will represent more than four times its original investment, it said.
The transaction is expected to close in H1 2025.
During VIG’s holding period, Preed Life expanded its advance payments and subscribers from 1.3 trillion won and 1.4 million to 2.6 trillion won and 2.3 million, respectively.
The company recorded 73.5 billion won in revenue with an operating loss in 2020, and grew to 276.7 billion won in revenue and 98.5 billion won in operating profit in 2024.
Preed Life has evolved into a comprehensive life-care company, with future expansion anticipated in senior care and adjacent sectors, VIG added.
VIG is raising its fifth private equity fund, targeting over $1 billion in size. The vehicle secured a domestic first close at around $360 million earlier last year.
