Establishment of Dedicated Organization to Support 'Technology Transfer and Commercialization Activation' for SMEs

Separate 'Technology Innovation Account' Established at Korea Technology Finance Corporation to Strengthen Management and Supervision
Revised 'Act on the Promotion of Technology Innovation for Small and Medium Enterprises' to Take Effect on the 21st

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Jong-hwa] A dedicated organization will be established within the Korea Technology Finance Corporation (Kibo) to revitalize technology transactions and commercialization for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Additionally, to grant independence in managing policy budgets required for supporting innovative growth of SMEs and to strengthen oversight, a separate 'Technology Innovation Account' will be set up within Kibo.

On the 20th, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced that it has amended and promulgated the 'Act on the Promotion of Technology Innovation for SMEs' and its enforcement decree, which promotes projects to facilitate technology transactions and commercialization for SMEs, designating Kibo as the dedicated implementing agency, with enforcement starting from the 21st.

Following the enforcement of the amended law and decree, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups will be able to promote projects such as △ technology transaction brokerage and mediation △ research and development support △ establishment, operation, and management of information networks △ technology trust management △ technology acquisition and investment △ demand discovery and research/analysis △ infrastructure development to activate technology transactions and commercialization for SMEs.

Next year, priority will be given to the 'SME Technology Transaction Activation Support Project (government proposal: 4.76 billion KRW),' which focuses on building a technology transaction infrastructure centered on SME demand and providing one-stop support for commercialization and productization of introduced technologies.

A dedicated technology transaction organization and a Technology Innovation Account will also be established. A dedicated project execution organization will be newly created within Kibo, and a seamless one-stop support system will be established?from discovering SME technology transaction demands, technology matching using the platform (Tech-Bridge), to productization of introduced technologies?expanding Kibo's role from a guarantee-specialized institution to a technology transaction-specialized institution in the future.

Furthermore, to grant independence in managing policy budgets required for open innovation growth support for SMEs and to strengthen management and supervision, a 'Technology Innovation Account' will be established separately from Kibo's existing financial funds.

Won Young-jun, Director of Technology Innovation Policy at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, stated, "Although SMEs account for a large proportion in the technology transaction market, the commercialization success rate of externally introduced technologies has averaged only 18% over the past three years. With the enforcement of the amended law, we will create a virtuous cycle structure from technology transactions → final products → innovative growth to promote the technology transaction ecosystem. We will promptly and flawlessly prepare dedicated organizations, project operations, and support procedures within this year."

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