The Seoul Economic Promotion Agency (SBA, CEO Kim Hyun-woo) , a small and medium-sized enterprise support organization of Seoul, announced that Hi Seoul Enterprise, a promising small and medium-sized enterprise certification system representing Seoul, achieved sales of 17.1 trillion won and exports of 3.6 trillion won as of 2025.
Hi Seoul Enterprise is a certification program designed to identify and foster promising small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) located in Seoul. Launched in 2004 with 11 companies, the program has grown to 1,161 certified and active companies as of 2025. Despite the global economic slowdown and ongoing domestic and international uncertainty, Hi Seoul Enterprises' total exports continued to grow, increasing by 5.6% year-on-year.
In particular, the 2025 export volume of 3.6 trillion won will account for approximately 10% of all exports by SMEs in Seoul, and is considered an indicator of the global competitiveness of Hi Seoul Enterprises. More than half of all Hi Seoul Enterprises, 602 companies, are participating in exports, targeting 119 countries, expanding their reach to markets around the world, including Europe, the Americas, Asia, and the Middle East. Sales also increased by 2.6% year-on-year, reaching 17.1 trillion won.
Behind these achievements lies the Seoul Economic Promotion Agency's multifaceted corporate growth support policies. Through B2B support projects based on inter-company collaboration, a total of 96 collaborations and contracts were created across 10 sectors, serving as a foundation for inter-company synergy and business expansion.
Overseas sales channels and partnership projects aimed at developing global markets also yielded results. Focusing on key markets such as the US, CIS, China, and Indonesia, a total of 725 export consultations, 53 MOUs, and on-site contracts worth 6.88 billion won were concluded. Furthermore, 32 corporate networking programs were held, with 1,560 participants, facilitating information sharing, technological cooperation, and joint business initiatives.
The competitiveness of Hi Seoul companies is also confirmed by R&D and corporate growth indicators. 846 companies, or 74.4% of all companies, operate dedicated R&D departments and are working to advance their technologies and secure future growth engines. Furthermore, six companies—Neurofit, Graphy, Adphorus, Curiosys, Acryl, and Aimd Bio—have successfully listed on the KOSDAQ in 2025, bringing the cumulative number of listed companies to 61.
The Seoul Economic Promotion Agency plans to recruit new Hi Seoul Companies in early April 2026 and continue to offer customized support programs for selected companies, including global expansion, inter-company collaboration, and capacity building. Given the strong interest shown in the previous round, with over 500 companies applying, it is anticipated that outstanding Seoul SMEs will continue to participate this year.
Kim Hyun-woo, CEO of the Seoul Economic Promotion Agency, said that Hi Seoul Enterprises was significant in achieving results despite the difficult business environment, and that he would continue to provide support so that they can grow into small and medium-sized enterprises representing Seoul in the global market.
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