Start-up conference held at a very troubled time

Lee Young, Minister of SMEs and Startups, speaks at the ComeUp 2022 start-up festival Wednesday, in Dongdaemun District, eastern Seoul. [MINISTRY OF SMES AND STARTUPS]

The start-up minister pledged a multi-billion-dollar government support program in the darkest time in recent memory for Korean start-ups.

The ComeUp Festival, Korea’s biggest start-up event, kicked off Wednesday at Dongdaemun Design Plaza in Dongdaemun District, eastern Seoul. This year's event was hosted by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and organized by the Korea Startup Forum, a private organization.

The three-day event was attended by start-ups and investors from 19 countries with some 250 participants. It was the fourth such festival.

“Only 2 percent of all the start-ups founded every year get venture capital investments, and that means 98 percent of companies are receiving government funds from the financial sector or the start-up ministry,” said Lee Young, Minister of SMEs and Startups, during a Future Talk discussion session with Jake Park, Socar CEO and chairman of the Korea Startup Forum.

“Therefore it is only realistic to support the companies using government funds until they are able to attract venture capital investments,” said Lee. “That is why we are setting up strategies with the financial sector to build a bridge for survival.”

Lee added that a 50-trillion-won ($36.6 billion) financial support program is scheduled to be announced by the end of the year.

She also promised to use an already established 8.3-trillion-won venture fund to help the shrinking start-up sector.

Socar CEO Park emphasized that only the start-ups making an actual profit will make it through this winter.

“The so-called liquidity party is over, and the higher the fall, the harder the fall,” said Park. ”In a difficult time like this, survival and thinking about what would come next after survival will be more important than growth.”

Park called for active government support, saying, “It will be of significant help if the Ministry of SMEs and Startups becomes the bridge for companies to make it through this cold winter and difficult situations.”

This year’s ComeUp event was organized by a private organization for the first time, the Korea Startup Forum, as part of the government’s effort to encourage more private participation.

Previously, the annual ComeUp festival was organized and hosted by the start-up ministry. Though the ministry remained the host and funded the ComeUp 2022, it plans to gradually pull away from the event over the next five years.

BY SHIN HA-NEE [shin.hanee@joongang.co.kr]