Busan City Seeks 'Hidden Champions' and 'Hidden Technologies'... Fostering Small Giants with Growth Potential

Busan-Type Hidden Champion and Hidden Tech Companies Application Open March 18?April 7

Evaluating 'Innovation and Growth Potential' for Small and Medium Enterprises Headquartered in Busan

Panoramic view of Busan City Hall.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] Busan City is on the lookout for ‘Hidden Champions.’ These hidden champions must be innovative companies with growth potential.

Busan City (Acting Mayor Lee Byung-jin) announced on the 19th that it is calling for applications for the ‘2021 Busan-type Hidden Champion (Hidden Tech) Companies,’ which lead regional economic growth and job creation by discovering excellent companies with innovation and growth potential.

The selection of ‘Busan-type Hidden Champion (Hidden Tech) Companies’ targets companies in Busan’s seven strategic industries that can create new industries and services in the era of the 4th Industrial Revolution by integrating and applying new technologies based on technological capabilities.

This year, Busan City plans to select about 11 companies divided into two support categories: ‘Busan-type Hidden Champion Companies’ and ‘Busan-type Hidden Tech Companies.’

Application requirements are for small and medium-sized enterprises or mid-sized companies headquartered in Busan. Busan-type Hidden Champion Companies must have had sales of 30 billion KRW or more in the previous year, while Busan-type Hidden Tech Companies must have had sales between 3 billion and 15 billion KRW in the previous year.

Additionally, companies must have an average R&D expenditure ratio of 1% or more relative to sales over the past three years, or a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of sales of 5% or more over the past five years, or a total export (direct and indirect) ratio of 10% or more relative to sales in the previous year.

In particular, mid-sized (candidate) companies that meet the application requirements for government projects such as World Class+ and Regional Representative Mid-sized Company Development Projects will be given priority as ‘Busan-type Hidden Champion Companies.’

Among the applicants, companies will be finally selected through eligibility screening, presentation evaluation, and on-site evaluation, and the selected companies will carry out the project from the time of agreement until the end of October.

The certification period for selected companies is five years. Busan-type Hidden Champion Companies will receive differential support of up to 90 million KRW annually, and Busan-type Hidden Tech Companies up to 40 million KRW annually, for two years.

Detailed information is available on the Busan City website and the Busan Technopark website announcement. Inquiries can also be made by phone to the Regional Industry Promotion Office at Busan Technopark.

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