Kibo Signs 'TECH Valley Guarantee' Agreement with Inje University

Expectations for Activation of Excellent Medical Technology Startups... Agreement Expanded to 67 Universities

Jung Yun-mo, Chairman of Kibo (fifth from the left), and Jeon Min-hyun, President of Inje University, are signing the TECH Valley Guarantee Agreement.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Cheol-hyun] The Korea Technology Finance Corporation (Chairman Jeong Yun-mo, hereinafter Kibo) announced on the 13th that it has signed a business agreement with Inje University (President Jeon Min-hyun) to establish a 'University Technology Commercialization Support Platform (U-Tech Valley).' With this agreement, the number of universities participating in the U-Tech Valley agreement has increased to a total of 67, including Seoul National University and Pohang University of Science and Technology. In particular, this agreement with Inje University, which plays a key role as a biomedical and medical device hub in the Gyeongnam region, is expected to activate excellent technology startups in the medical field.

According to the agreement, Inje University will recommend outstanding startup companies within the university to Kibo, and Kibo will provide comprehensive support not only through financial assistance such as guarantees and investments but also non-financial support including consulting, technology transfer, and initial public offering (IPO) support to the recommended companies. The 'Tech Valley Guarantee' is a specialized guarantee support program introduced to support the commercialization of excellent technologies developed by universities and research institutes. It was also selected as a major initiative in the 'Second Venture Boom Expansion Strategy' jointly announced by the government last year. It includes exceptional support measures such as providing a guarantee limit of up to 3 billion KRW to encourage professors, researchers, and other talented individuals to challenge and engage in startups.

Since last year, Kibo has been supporting the scale-up of supported companies by organizing networking opportunities with venture capitalists to assist Tech Valley-supported companies in attracting external investments. Additionally, Kibo has expanded the support scale annually, providing a total guarantee limit of 460.2 billion KRW until last year, and plans to support 230 billion KRW this year. Chairman Jeong Yun-mo of Kibo stated, "We will continue to take the lead in ensuring that university professors, researchers, and others with excellent technologies succeed in startups and technology commercialization."

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