[Sponsored Report] KDB to offer financial support for tech SMEs

Korea Development Bank CEO Lee Dong-gull, left, and Won Kwang-yeon, chairman of the National Research Council of Science and Technology, hold up a business agreement signed between both parties on Tuesday. [KOREA DEVELOPMENT BANK]

Korea Development Bank on Tuesday signed a business agreement with the National Research Council of Science and Technology and 24 government-funded research institutes to commercialize cutting-edge technology and create jobs.

The agreement is meaningful because small and medium-sized companies with outstanding technology can receive financial assistance to help generate jobs. KDB has been selected as a financial institution to lead the fourth industrial revolution, and government-funded research institutes are the main research centers for science.

The agreement includes:

* Investment and loans for businesses recommended by government-funded research institutes through KDB’s R&BD Program

* KDB NextRound, a venture capital marketplace where companies seeking investment are connected with those who can provide it

* Technology transfer and commercialization support through KDB’s Tech.Connect Day, which connects companies and government institutes.

“KDB is planning to intensify financial aid for technological development and commercialization since it is the key to innovative growth,” said Lee Dong-gull, CEO of KDB. “The bank aims to form the biggest ‘R&BD association of scientific technology’ in Korea and is going to put in heavy effort to fulfill its responsibility as the leading financial institution for the fourth industrial revolution.”

“In order to follow the trend of the fourth industrial revolution, government-funded research institutes’ research results should lead to corporate growth and employment expansion that can initiate the virtuous cycle of reinvestment in R&D,” said Won Kwang-yeon, chairman of the National Research Council of Science and Technology.

BY YEE JAE-EUN [yee.jae-eun@joongang.co.kr]