FUNDING & SUPPORT

Government to Select 8,000 Aspiring Founders: Receive 2 Million Won to Start, Up to 1 Billion Won Upon Passing Auditions

On August 13, the government jointly announced the '2nd Everyone's Startup Project Promotion Plan' at the Emergency Economic Headquarters meeting. The initiative provides 10,000 aspiring entrepreneurs with 2 million won each in activity funds, followed by tiered support of up to 20 million won for 2,200 regional audition participants and up to 1 billion won for 400 national contest finalists. Applications open on August 20, targeting at least 80% pre-founders and 70% non-metropolitan participants, while re-founding eligibility has been expanded from 3 to within 7 years. Specialized leagues, such as the Social Venture League (10 companies, up to 150 million won) and the Global League (80 individuals, up to 30 million won), have been newly established. Financial safety nets for small business owners were also reinforced, highlighted by the announcement of a new special guarantee plan for credit-vulnerable small businesses by the Korea Credit Guarantee Foundation on August 11.