Busan's 'Startup 2nd Champion' Decided Today

June 6 Afternoon B-Startup Challenge Finals at Haeundae Nurimaru... Competing for Total Investment of 200 Million Won

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] Who will be the ultimate winner of the 'Startup World Cup,' where startup items fiercely compete?

Busan City announced on the 5th that the final round of the '2nd B-Startup Challenge' will be held at 12 noon on the 5th at Nurimaru APEC House in Haeundae.

Co-hosted by Busan City and BNK Busan Bank, this nationwide startup investment competition targets startups within five years of establishment across the country to discover excellent startup items and companies with high growth potential. The total prize money is 200 million KRW.

This year, 232 startup companies from 15 cities and provinces nationwide participated, and 25 companies passed the preliminary round through document and interview evaluations. Ten companies survived to the final round held on this day, and among them, five companies are expected to claim victory. The competition rate for the winner is 46 to 1.

The grand prize, the Busan Mayor's Award, includes an investment of 100 million KRW, and a total of five companies will receive equity investments worth 200 million KRW. Busan Cultural Broadcasting will record the entire competition and produce a special broadcast in June.

At the finals, representatives from nationwide private investment firms such as K-Bridge Investment, Korea Accelerator Association, BNK Venture Investment, and the Korea Startup Forum will attend to judge and review the investment potential of the finalists and assess the possibility of follow-up investments.

Now in its second year, the competition has increased the investment scale from 100 million KRW to 200 million KRW. The number of participating startups nationwide also surged from 173 companies in the first competition to 232 companies, upgrading the competition level significantly.

Besides the prize money investment, there are many other benefits. All finalists will be supported with incubation at 'Bigs,' a public-private joint co-working space opening in September, operated by Busan City and seven relocated public institutions. Support for residency at Busan Bank SUM Incubator will also be provided.

Additionally, three companies will receive the right to advance to the finals of the 'K-Startup' competition (with a prize of 300 million KRW) hosted by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, two companies will advance to the finals of the 'Dongseung Cup Startup Competition' hosted by Dongseung Science and Technology Institute in Beijing, China, and three e-commerce companies will participate in the 'E-commerce Roadshow' hosted by Weihai City, Shandong Province, with all participation costs including airfare and accommodation covered by China.

Byun Sung-wan, Acting Mayor of Busan, said, "Startups that participated in the first competition received various follow-up investments, increased jobs and sales, and it became an opportunity for participating companies to grow further. We will make Busan a city where innovative entrepreneurs from around the world gather."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.