Ministry of SMEs and Startups Selects 57 Innovative Companies as National Representatives

CNC Materials and Other SMEs with Outstanding Technology and Growth Potential
Financial Support Provided to Companies with High Growth Potential but Heavy Debt Burdens

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Jong-hwa] The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced on the 9th that it has selected 57 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with both technological excellence and growth potential as part of the 'Innovative Companies National Representative 1000'.

According to the 'Innovative Companies National Representative 1000 Comprehensive Financial Support Plan' launched in July last year, a total of 1,000 representative innovative companies from each industrial sector will be selected by 2022, and the selected companies will receive comprehensive financial and non-financial support.

This is the third selection, where nine ministries including the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Ministry of Science and ICT, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Ministry of Environment, and the Korean Intellectual Property Office collaborated to select 321 companies across the three major new industries (BIG3) such as system semiconductors, future vehicles, bio-health, and the entire innovative growth industry.

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups conducted the 'Innovative Companies National Representative 1000 Selection Committee' targeting companies selected through existing programs such as 'Post-TIPS', 'Large-Star Solver Platform', and 'Materials, Parts, and Equipment Small Giants'. The committee evaluated based on global competitiveness, alignment with recent mega trends, predicted market growth within the next five years, technological differentiation, and technology maturity by gathering expert opinions from various fields.

Twenty-seven companies including C&C Materials, Hutom, and Revest were selected through the Ministry's Post-TIPS program; these are startup teams with less than seven years of business experience that received a 'success' rating in TIPS research and development (R&D).

Nine companies including PiQuant, Medipixel, and RTM were selected through the Ministry's Large-Star Solver Platform. These startups successfully solved innovation challenges proposed by large corporations such as LG Uplus and Naver by utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) and big data.

Twenty-one companies including Amogreentech, Mico Ceramics, and Three A Logics RPS were chosen as Materials, Parts, and Equipment Small Giants by the Ministry. These companies have a sales ratio of 50% or more in materials, parts, and equipment and have secured private investments exceeding 50 million KRW. Additionally, 78 companies with outstanding technological performance and growth potential in the digital, green new deal, and materials, parts, and equipment sectors were also selected last year.

The companies selected as Innovative Companies National Representatives 1000 will receive sufficient support according to their funding needs through collaboration among policy financial institutions such as the Korea Development Bank, Industrial Bank of Korea, Export-Import Bank of Korea, Korea Credit Guarantee Fund, Korea Technology Finance Corporation, and Korea Growth Investment Corporation.

Companies selected as Innovative Companies National Representatives can apply directly by visiting the Innovative Growth Policy Finance Center website or policy financial institutions when financial demand arises. To assist selected companies facing difficulties in financial support, a Financial Difficulty Support Group (Innovative Companies National Representative 1000 Comprehensive Support Team, Financial Services Commission, Ministry of SMEs and Startups) will be operated for regular monitoring.

No Yong-seok, Global Growth Policy Officer at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, said, "Even companies with excellent technology and growth potential found it difficult to receive support through existing evaluations if their sales were low and debt ratios high, but through the Innovative Companies National Representative 1000 program, active financial support will enable them to succeed in scaling up."

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