Korea Technology Finance Corporation (KOTEC) said on the 24th that it signed a business agreement for guarantee and financial support, titled "Y-Bridge (Y-BRIDGE) for youth corporations to leap forward," with Hana Bank at Hana Bank's headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the 21st.
The agreement was prepared to ease the initial funding burden on youth start-ups and to back efforts to strengthen the competitiveness of youth corporations and invigorate technology start-ups through tailored financial support by growth stage.
Under the agreement, KOTEC will supply a total of 100 billion won in agreement guarantees, funded by Hana Bank's special contributions and guarantee fee support.
Through the agreement guarantees, KOTEC will offer preferential benefits to eligible companies, including ▲ a higher guarantee ratio (85%→100% for three years) and ▲ a fixed guarantee fee (0.3% for up to three years until age 39), while Hana Bank will ▲ cover guarantee fees (0.3 percentage point for three years). As a result, the companies can use technology guarantees for three years without bearing guarantee fees.
Those eligible are technology start-ups within seven years of founding among new technology businesses that meet KOTEC's technology guarantee requirements, where the actual manager is age 17 to 39.
Based on this agreement, the two institutions plan to discover promising youth start-ups and cooperate so they can smoothly raise the funds needed from the leap stage through expansion overseas.
Kwon Hyeong-taek, KOTEC chairman, said, "Youth start-ups are important actors that create the future of our economy with new technologies and ideas, so it is important to build a financial foundation that allows bold attempts," adding, "KOTEC will continue to expand cooperation with financial institutions to actively support youth start-ups so they can sustain innovation and grow into corporations with global competitiveness."