The number of startups decreased in the first half of 2025. However, in June, when the Lee Jae-myung government was inaugurated, the number of startups slightly increased compared to the same period last year.
The Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises and Startups announced the '2025 First Half Startup Trends' report on the 28th.
Overall, the number of startups in the first half of 2025 was counted at 574,401, a decrease of 7.8% compared to the same period last year. The number of startups recorded in 2021 was 730,260, marking a decrease for four consecutive years. Notably, startups decreased primarily in the wholesale and retail trade (down 8.1%), accommodation and food services (down 14.7%), and real estate (down 12.8%).
However, there was an increase in startups in specialized knowledge sectors such as finance and insurance (up 21.9%) and professional and scientific technical services (up 1.7%). The agriculture, forestry, fisheries, and mining sectors (up 9.7%) also saw growth, particularly in agriculture.
Monthly, startups decreased compared to the same month last year from January to May, but in June, there was a 1.1% increase compared to the same month last year.
By age group, startup activity declined across all age groups. However, while older individuals' startups relatively increased, those aged 60 and over showed a smaller decline compared to other age groups.
Meanwhile, technology-based startups in the first half of 2025 totaled 108,096, representing a 3.1% (3,481) decrease compared to the previous year, although the proportion of technology-based startups within the total startups increased by 0.9 percentage points.