The Ministry of SMEs and Startups (Minister Oh Young-joo, hereinafter referred to as the Ministry of SMEs and Startups) announced that it held the 'Korea-Japan Venture and Startup Investment Summit 2025' at the Royal Park Hotel Iconic Tokyo Shiodome Hall (25F) in Japan on the 21st.
The event was held in the following order: a meeting for Korean startups advancing into Japan, hosted by Minister Oh Young-joo; a signing ceremony for the Korea-Japan Cooperation Global Fund; and an investment attraction presentation (IR) for Korean startups. Around 90 people attended the event, including Minister Oh Young-joo, the Korean Embassy in Japan, Korean and Japanese venture capitalists and startups, and event officials.
The main event contents are as follows.
◆ Meeting on Local Advancement of Korean Startups
Nine Korean startups that have advanced into Japan attended the meeting, and discussions were held on the difficulties of doing business in Japan and the government's policy direction.
Park Chan-sun, CEO of T-CinnoBio, who attended the meeting, said, “Japan has a good environment for global expansion if it succeeds in Japan due to its geographical accessibility, strong domestic market, and high global recognition. In particular, I think that the bio field will be a great opportunity for K-startups if they collaborate with large global pharmaceutical companies.”
T-Cinno Bio is a startup specializing in the development of anticancer drugs that has been recognized domestically and internationally for its technology, including receiving an orphan drug designation (ODD) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its self-developed immunotherapy candidate substance, 'TXN10128', in January 2025.
Minister Oh Young-joo said, “Recently, Korea-Japan relations have been actively exchanging and cooperating in various fields such as tourism, culture, and industry, and Korea’s status in Japan has risen, making this an optimal time for our startups to advance into Japan.” He added, “The Ministry of SMEs and Startups will actively support the global expansion of domestic startups, including into Japan, through its local bases.”
◆ Korea-Japan Cooperation Global Fund MOU Signing Ceremony
The global fund signing ceremony was held ahead of the Korean startup investment attraction presentation (IR).
The signing ceremony, held under the presence of Minister Oh Young-joo, was attended by Park Seon-bae, CEO of Shinhan Venture Investment, Yasuhiko Yurimoto, CEO of Global Brain, and Shin Sang-han, Vice President of Korea Venture Investment, a mother fund operator, who signed an MOU for cooperation between the three organizations.
This Korea-Japan cooperation global fund is expected to be raised to a scale of 29 billion won, and investors from both Korea and Japan, including the SMEs and Startups Ministry’s mother fund, participated in the fund. This is part of the ‘Global Fund 1 trillion won or more rapid raising plan’ announced by the SMEs and Startups Ministry during its business report early this year. In particular, this global fund is characterized by the fact that it is jointly operated by ‘Shinhan Venture Investment (Korea)’ and ‘Global Brain (Japan),’ which are representative venture capitals of Korea and Japan. The venture fund raised this time is expected to play a large role not only in investment in Korean and Japanese startups, but also in exchanges and cooperation between the venture investment ecosystems of the two countries.
◆ Korean Startup Investment Attraction Presentation
At the Korean startup investment attraction presentation, 10 Korean startups in the fields of AI, IT, bio, and cosmetics showcased their technological prowess in front of Korean and Japanese investors and carried out investment attraction activities.
When selecting companies to participate in the presentation, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups selected startups that have already entered or hope to enter Japan, considering the demand in the Japanese market and the possibility of attracting future investments, even if they are early-stage startups. The companies that participated in the investment attraction presentation are as follows.
Among the participating companies, CEO Chan Yoon of 'EverX' is an orthopedic specialist who received an innovation award at CES 2024 for 'MORA Care', a self-management solution for musculoskeletal disorders in the workplace. The startup, which has received investment from domestic and foreign companies such as LG Electronics and Samsung NEXT, as well as investment firms, plans to expand its sales market in Japan.
'Alicon' is a startup that develops an all-in-one unmanned business operation system based on AI and IoT technologies. It is a startup with high growth potential in Japan, as it is providing localized services in Japan through a business partnership with Rakuten.
In addition, Purpleplus is pushing forward to enter the Japanese market through its kids' cosmetic brand 'Coco Hilli', leveraging its stability and design characteristics.
The 10 Korean startups that participated in the investment attraction presentation plan to use this event to make full-fledged forays into Japan.
Minister Oh Young-joo said in his opening remarks, “The recent global corporate environment is expected to change from being centered on big tech that relied on large-scale infrastructure investment, such as the emergence of DeepSec, to being centered on startups with cutting-edge technologies.” He continued, “At CES 2025, 152 Korean companies won 210 innovation awards, and the technological prowess and creativity of Korean startups are recognized worldwide.” He asked investors to show great interest in and invest in Korean ventures and startups.
He continued, “The Ministry of SMEs and Startups will provide full support for the realization of Startup Korea, including actively supporting startups in attracting global investment by creating a global fund worth over 1 trillion won every year so that K-startups can grow into leading players in the global market.”
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