Start-up Support
In a departure from one-time funding support for high-performing startups, KODIT runs combined supporting programs that provide systematic financial assistance tailored to individual startups’ growth stages, including guarantees, insurance, investment, and consulting as well as non-financial assistance.
In order to provide startups with organized support, KODIT operates a program that provides assistance tailored to different stages of start-up’s growth. The “Promising Startups Growth Support Program” consists of 4 credit guarantee programs - “Guarantee for Pre-Stage Startup”, “Guarantee for New Startup”, “Guarantee for Early Stage Startup”, and “Guarantee for Growth Stage Startup”.
Start-up NEST is a program for startup support featuring acceleration of financial support and provision of phased growth support. In addition to financial assistance through guarantees and investment, a host of non-financial services are offered including consulting, technical advisory, help in overseas market development, office space, and marketing. Intensive assistance is also provided to place startups on a growth trajectory.
KODIT regularly accepts applications for this program. Startups passing application screening can receive guarantees and investment, arranged private investment, and non-financial support in advertising, marketing, and technical consulting.
KODIT has established a system to support scaling up of startups by each stage of growth(R&D Stage, Initial Stage, Growth Stage, Leap Stage), especially startups in new industries and startups with innovative technology.
To ensure that innovative startups can continue to receive sufficient guarantees in the process of growth, a four-stage support system was established and the credit guarantee products for each stage are linked together which facilitate the continuous support.
The Innovative Icon Support Program is a scale-up program that selects innovative startups with high growth potential and provides credit guarantees up to KRW 15 billion(about USD 1.4 million). Innovative Icon will be provided with various services such as consulting, legal advice and support for overseas expansion.
In order to foster innovative startups as unicorn companies, KODIT introduced the “Innovative Icon Support Program”, which plans to discover 10 Innovative Icons every year from 2019 and selects about 50 Innovative Icons by 2023.