Yoon: "I Will Accompany Startups on Overseas Trips"…Promise to Support Global Expansion

Lunch Meeting with Venture and Startup CEOs
Providing Solid Financial Support for Startup Growth

President Yoon Suk-yeol stated on the 8th, "In the future, when I go on overseas trips, I plan to bring startups along to help them expand internationally." The intention is to assist domestic ventures and startups with innovative technologies in attracting overseas investment and securing sales channels, enabling them to grow into global unicorn companies.

On the same day, President Yoon held a luncheon meeting at the Yongsan Presidential Office with young representatives and executives from the venture and startup sectors, saying, "I heard that Korean startups swept various awards at CES 2024 last January, and the international community must have felt how powerful Korea's 'Young Power' is."

He continued, "Just as former U.S. President Barack Obama sought to create national wealth through the 'Startup America' program, I share a similar vision," emphasizing, "We will firmly provide various financial supports so that our startups can grow into global companies."

President Yoon Suk-yeol is taking a commemorative photo with participants of the luncheon with startup youth held on the 8th at the Yongsan Presidential Office building in Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]

During the meeting, President Yoon also reviewed the progress of the 'Startup Korea Comprehensive Plan' established last August. The Startup Korea Comprehensive Plan aims to shift the paradigm of domestic startup policies, which have been focused on domestic commercialization, and to lay the groundwork for South Korea to emerge as a global startup powerhouse.

Oh Young-joo, Minister of SMEs and Startups, reported, "We are creating a private-sector-led venture investment ecosystem supported by the government," adding, "We have introduced the 'Private Venture Fund,' directly funded by the private sector, and the 'Startup Korea Fund,' jointly funded by the public and private sectors."

She also stated, "The 'Startup Legal Support Service,' ordered by President Yoon at the February public discussion on livelihoods, officially began today to assist startups facing complex regulations," and added, "To support our startups' overseas expansion, we will expand the 'Global Fund,' currently established at a scale of 10 trillion won, by 1 trillion won annually until 2027."

After Minister Oh's announcement, President Yoon listened attentively to the difficulties and suggestions from the luncheon attendees. Ha Tae-hoon, CEO of WeVenture, said, "Thanks to government efforts, many funds related to deep tech investment have been established, enabling stable investments," and requested, "It would be great if a predictable investment environment is maintained to ensure continued stable investments."

Following this, President Yoon responded to Ha's remark that collaboration among ministries is going well with Minister Oh, a former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, leading the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, stating, "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and overseas diplomatic missions should serve as an economic branch that supports the offshore economic activities of Korean companies."

Kim Da-won, CEO of Marina Chain, requested, "At a time when global climate change response is crucial, I ask for the government's interest and support for startups providing AI-based solutions to regulate carbon emissions in maritime shipping." President Yoon encouraged Kim, saying, "Decarbonizing maritime logistics is a very important issue discussed at the Group of Twenty (G20), and you are doing very important work."

President Yoon and the attendees also discussed policy tasks to protect investors and resolve the Korea discount. When voices arose regarding the largest-ever net foreign buying and the need to abolish the financial investment income tax, President Yoon explained government policies such as strengthening penalties for illegal short selling, imposing short selling bans, and raising the stock transfer tax threshold, promising to steadily pursue the abolition of the financial investment income tax and the expansion of benefits for Individual Savings Accounts (ISA).

President Yoon also emphasized, "While supporting 'value-up' initiatives to help our companies increase their corporate value independently, we will actively establish systems and practices that can enhance corporate value through tax burden relief and the enhancement of shareholder rights."

Attending the meeting were 13 startup stakeholders, including Seong Sang-yeop, Chairman of the Korea Venture Business Association; Yoon Chan, CEO of EverX; Kim Da-won, CEO of Marina Chain; Kim Seol-yong, Senior Researcher at ZCrypto; young startup representatives and executives; and Ha Tae-woon, CEO of WeVenture, a venture capital firm and expert. From the government, Minister Oh Young-joo of SMEs and Startups and Financial Services Commission Chairman Kim Ju-hyun attended, along with Seong Tae-yoon, Chief of Policy at the Presidential Office, and Park Chun-seop, Senior Secretary for Economic Affairs.

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