KDB Pushes for "NextOne Gwangju" to Support Regional Ventures

24 Busan Startups Attract 37.5 Billion Won in Investment
Program to Be Expanded Based on Southeastern Region Performance

Korea Development Bank (KDB) is pushing to establish "NextOne Gwangju" as a new hub for its regional venture and startup investment attraction support program "KDB NextOne" in the southwestern region. Building on the performance of "NextOne Busan," which is currently being operated in the southeastern region, the bank plans to expand the regional venture platform and broaden the scope of the innovation ecosystem.

Officials from the 15 companies selected for the KDB NextOne Busan 4th cohort (front row, fifth from the left: Kim Bokgyu, Senior Vice President at Korea Development Bank) / Provided by Korea Development Bank

According to KDB's 2026 work plan submitted to the National Assembly on February 15, KDB has decided to pursue the launch of "KDB NextOne Gwangju" based on the operating performance of "KDB NextOne Busan." KDB has continued discussions on bringing the NextOne program to the Gwangju area and has been reviewing the establishment of the new hub as part of efforts to expand innovation infrastructure in the southwestern region.

The Gwangju Metropolitan Government has been actively working to attract the NextOne program. By bringing KDB's startup support program to Gwangju, the city aimed to create a pathway for local startups to receive both financial and non-financial support from KDB and to advance into global markets. To this end, the city reportedly joined the competition to host the program by offering conditions such as providing a dedicated incubation space within its complex hub center.

KDB NextOne is an incubation program that selects promising early-stage startups in the region and supports them in attracting investment and scaling up. Its core is to build a foundation for the growth of early-stage companies by providing office space, venture capital (VC) mentoring, IR consulting, and demo days. After the leap phase, the program also supports opportunities for investment attraction and business collaboration by linking with "KDB NextRound" and the startup fair "NextRise."

The Busan program has already produced visible results. KDB announced that it has operated "KDB NextOne Busan," which was launched in June last year, through its 4th cohort, completing incubation for a total of 47 startups. Among them, 24 companies succeeded in attracting a total of 37.5 billion won in investment during the incubation period. In the recent recruitment for the 4th cohort, 163 companies applied, recording a competition rate of 11 to 1. The selected companies were largely innovative startups based in the Busan-Ulsan-Gyeongnam (Bu-Ul-Gyeong) region in fields such as artificial intelligence (AI), advanced defense, and biohealth.

KDB will also expand its support for revitalizing regional economies. It plans to operate specialized programs to secure future growth engines for local areas and to expand and reorganize its "regional preferential special products." KDB intends to establish new programs such as the "Regional Innovation Industry Support Special Fund (5 trillion won)" and the "Regional Leading Companies Special Fund (1 trillion won)," while also broadening the regional investment base through the creation of region-specific funds such as the "Regional Revitalization Investment Fund (200 billion won)" and the "Southern Region Growth Support Fund (350 billion won)."

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