Kibo Partners with Seoul City to Introduce the 'Seoul-style BIRD Program'

Full-Cycle R&D Support for Small and Venture Businesses in the Seoul Area

The Korea Technology Finance Corporation (Kibo) and the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on the 30th that they will implement the 'Seoul-type BIRD (Bridge for Innovative R&D) Program,' which links loans and Seoul-style research and development (R&D) support projects to support the entire R&D cycle of small and medium-sized venture companies in Seoul.

The BIRD program is a support model by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups that links guarantees and contributions to support the entire R&D cycle and leads to the creation of tangible results and increased success rates in SME R&D. Kibo first introduced the BIRD program in 2023 and, through collaboration with the Small and Medium Business Technology Information Promotion Agency, supported a total of 136 companies over two years with guarantees of 27.2 billion KRW and contributions of 23.4 billion KRW.

The 'Seoul-type BIRD Program' expands the existing BIRD program operated by Kibo to the local government of Seoul, and plans to provide matched support for R&D funds of small businesses in the Seoul area in stages. The two organizations will provide support divided into three stages to revitalize a private-led technology innovation ecosystem. ▲ Stage 1 (Pre-R&D): R&D planning funds with a 200 million KRW guarantee from Kibo ▲ Stage 2 (R&D): R&D execution funds with up to 400 million KRW Seoul-type R&D support from Seoul Metropolitan Government ▲ Stage 3 (Post-R&D): R&D commercialization funds with up to 3 billion KRW guarantee from Kibo.

Lee Jae-pil, director of Kibo, said, “The Seoul-type BIRD program is an important stepping stone for the successful commercialization of R&D by small businesses in Seoul, and will lead to continuous technological innovation and scale-up of small and medium-sized ventures.” He added, “Kibo will continue to expand collaboration with related organizations to solve various difficulties that small businesses may face throughout the entire R&D cycle and will do its best to create a private-led technology innovation ecosystem.”