Will a 'Unicorn' Be Born... Busan's First Preliminary and Baby Unicorn Companies Selected by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups
Busan Startup Company SocialBean Takes a Step Closer to Becoming a Unicorn
MedPark and ShareTreats Join Baby Unicorn 200 Nurturing Project
[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] Three prospective and baby unicorn companies challenging the so-called 'unicorn' status have been born in Busan.
A unicorn company refers to a startup company less than 10 years old with a corporate value of over 1 billion dollars.
The Busan Metropolitan City (Mayor Park Hyung-jun) announced on the 2nd that three startup companies in Busan were selected on the 1st for the Ministry of SMEs and Startups' 'K-Unicorn Project'.
The Ministry of SMEs and Startups' 'K-Unicorn Project' is divided into a special guarantee for prospective unicorns with a corporate value over 100 billion KRW and a Baby Unicorn 200 nurturing project for companies with a corporate value under 100 billion KRW.
The finally selected companies each receive special guarantees up to 10 billion KRW and 300 million KRW in market pioneering funds, and may receive preferential treatment when applying for guarantees, policy funds, and technology development (R&D).
Busan's SocialBean Co., Ltd. (CEO Kim Hak-soo) founded an influencer-based non-face-to-face e-commerce platform, was selected as a Forbes 2030 Power Leader, and achieved cumulative investments of 16.5 billion KRW, leading to its selection for the 2021 prospective unicorn special guarantee project.
Busan City supported SocialBean Co., Ltd. through the 2021 Ace Stella nurturing support project. SocialBean's sales last year increased by 243% compared to the previous year, and the number of employees grew from 13 at the end of 2018 to 138 currently, more than 10 times in two years, showing rapid growth every year. It is expected to become Busan's first unicorn company in the future.
MedPark Co., Ltd. (CEO Park Jung-bok) was established in 2017. With technology in bone graft materials and dental equipment, it achieved cumulative investments of 12.2 billion KRW, sales of 5.4 billion KRW, and 70 employees (as of 2020).
ShareTreats Co., Ltd. (CEO Lee Hong-bae), founded in 2017, provides a local startup mobile gifticon service targeting Southeast Asia, achieving cumulative investments of 5.4 billion KRW, over 1 million monthly transactions, monthly transaction amounts exceeding 4 billion KRW, and 10 employees.
Both companies were selected for this year's Baby Unicorn 200 nurturing project.
Busan City supported MedPark Co., Ltd. through the 2019 Busan-type Hidden Champion and 2019 Million Club projects, and supported ShareTreats Co., Ltd. with the 2019 Centap one-person creative company residency.
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They have been focusing on discovering and supporting the next-generation unicorn companies of Busan. Mayor Park Hyung-jun of Busan said, "With the infrastructure accumulated through Busan City's startup support projects and a systematized support program centered on startup demanders, we hope many companies will grow into unicorn companies in Busan, a city great for startups."
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