BUSAN — The Korea Technology Finance Corporation (KIBO) held its second management strategy workshop of 2026 at its headquarters in Busan on the 3rd, the fund said, with executives, headquarters division heads and branch managers from across the country attending.
The workshop reviewed progress on key policy initiatives and discussed future business direction under the theme "Growth for All, Completed Through Technology Finance in the Era of Mega-Projects." Main agenda items included the role of technology financing in fostering industries linked to mega-projects, an overhaul of the organization's structure to support a third venture boom, support programs for business succession through mergers and acquisitions, and financing measures to commercialize the results of government research and development.
KIBO has recently expanded its organization to strengthen support functions tailored to each growth stage of small and medium-sized venture companies. It opened a branch in Haeundae to improve access to financing for companies in eastern Busan, and created a dedicated team to support business succession M&A.
In July, the fund established an R&D Finance Department to promote the commercialization of government R&D results, along with a Technology Damage Assessment Center for SMEs to help protect small companies' technology and provide relief for damages. In the first half of this year, it expanded intellectual property guarantees for deep-tech companies in fields such as artificial intelligence, biotechnology and semiconductors, and strengthened its restart guarantee program supporting second attempts by entrepreneurs whose ventures failed despite good-faith efforts.
Lee Kwang-jae, chair of the National Assembly's Special Committee on Budget and Accounts, gave a special lecture at the workshop on the theme "A Nation That Makes Its People Rich." Lee exchanged views with participants on issues including securing sovereignty in artificial intelligence, restoring the growth ladder, technology valuation, M&A and technology trading, and technology protection.
"With the government's three major mega-projects and its policy priorities in view, this is the moment for KIBO to think hard about and give concrete shape to the new programs it will pursue," KIBO Chairman Kwon Hyung-taek said. "KIBO's role is to carry the recovery in our economy, driven by strong exports, through to the growth of technology-based small and venture companies." He added, "The more uncertainty persists at home and abroad, including the war in the Middle East, the more KIBO must go beyond being a simple support agency and become a true partner that is the first to extend a hand to companies and stands with them through difficulty."
