A tiny South Korean hedge fund that invested around $500,000 in Parasite, a film about class conflict and social inequality, hit the jackpot after the dark comedy became the first foreign-language film in history to win the Oscar for Best Picture. The thriller follows two families on opposite sides of the economic scale whose unusual relationship exposes the dark, and often humorous, side of modern capitalism. The privately sold fund, run by Seoul-based Ryukyung PSG Asset Management Inc., has returned 72.1 percent since its launch in July 2018, according to Bloomberg News. The fund, which has also profited from other Korean films, including Extreme Job and Exit, only invests in movies distributed by Korea’s CJ Group. The success of Parasite reflects how investors are buying alternative assets in film-financing funds at a time when K-Pop and Korean soap operas are boosting South Korea’s economy. Parasite’s production company, Barunson Entertainment & Arts Corp, also celebrated the film’s big win, with shares surging about 90 percent this week.
