Announcement of Investment Project for 'Busan Future Growth Venture Fund'... Establishing a Fund of 258 Billion KRW

The Largest Ever Regional Innovation Venture Fund Project
Online Applications Open Until 2 PM on September 2

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced on the 12th that it plans to invest 100 billion KRW to create a venture fund worth 258 billion KRW through the "Busan Future Growth Venture Fund Investment Announcement."

Photo by Ministry of SMEs and Startups

This announcement covers the entire investment budget of the Busan Future Growth Venture Fund, which was established on June 28 with Busan City, KDB Industrial Bank, BNK Financial Group, and others. It marks the largest scale ever among regional innovation venture fund projects jointly invested by the Korea Fund of Funds, local governments, and public institutions to provide seed money for startups and venture companies outside the metropolitan area. Major investors include the Korea Fund of Funds with 25 billion KRW, KDB Industrial Bank with 50 billion KRW, BNK Busan Bank with 10 billion KRW, Busan City with 5 billion KRW, and the Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology with 5 billion KRW.

First, 40 billion KRW will be invested in the "Regional League," targeting venture capitalists (VCs) and startup incubators in the Busan area, creating six funds totaling 57.6 billion KRW. Additionally, 50 billion KRW will be invested in the "Metropolitan League," targeting VCs operating in the metropolitan area, creating five funds totaling 167 billion KRW. Among the metropolitan league funds, one will select a VC affiliated with a non-financial corporate group as the fund manager to promote strategic collaboration between the VC’s parent company and Busan-based companies. Furthermore, 10 billion KRW will be invested in the "Global League," targeting overseas VCs, to create a fund worth 33.4 billion KRW.

Proposals for the Busan Future Growth Venture Fund investment announcement will be accepted online from 10:00 AM on the 26th until 2:00 PM on the 2nd of next month. After the first review, including document screening and on-site inspection, and the second review, which involves presentations of fund manager proposals, the final fund managers will be selected in October. For more details, please refer to the Korea Venture Investment Corp website.

Oh Young-joo, Minister of SMEs and Startups, said, "This Busan Future Growth Venture Fund investment project, the largest ever, is expected to be a major turning point for the growth of venture and startup companies in Busan, along with the Korean-style Station F to be established in Busan North Port." He added, "Starting with Busan, we will lay the foundation for various venture funds involving local banks and local anchor companies to be created in other regions as well."

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups is continuing consultations with related local governments and investment institutions to ensure that other regional innovation venture funds selected through this year’s first regular Korea Fund of Funds investment project, such as those in Gyeongnam, Gyeongbuk, and Jeonnam, can also be established within this year.