Promising startups from Busan have secured large-scale export and investment agreements in Vietnam, a key gateway to the Southeast Asian market, signaling progress in their push into global markets
Twenty promising startups from outside the greater Seoul area signed 66 memorandums of understanding worth a combined $15.69 million, or about 21 billion won, through the local program of the “2026 Seuseuro Project” held in Ho Chi Minh City from the 17th to the 21st of this month, the Busan Center for Creative Economy and Innovation said on the 31st.
Now in its third year, the Seuseuro Project is a global acceleration program jointly overseen by the Busan Regional Office of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and Korea Southern Power, with the Busan center running the program and DRB Dongil and Busan University of Foreign Studies participating as partners.
Over five days, the participating companies took part in B2B buyer meetups, a joint pavilion at Vietnam’s innovation business expo InnoEx2026, an open innovation day and on-site buyer meetups. Meetings with local buyers and investors totaled 266.
Of the 66 agreements, investment reviews accounted for the largest share at $5.1 million, followed by procurement and distribution cooperation at $4.93 million, proof-of-concept projects at $4.21 million, and business and technology cooperation at $1.45 million. Notably, 25 of the agreements involved proof-of-concept work applying startup technology to local production environments, laying the groundwork for deals that go beyond one-time exchanges and lead to actual commercialization, the center said.
Related events also produced notable results. Five participating companies reached the top 30 finalists at Startup Wheel 2026, a global startup competition, and CrossHub advanced to the final top five. DRB Dongil, a partner organization, visited a factory in Vietnam to examine possibilities for cooperation on demonstration projects.
The Busan center said it will continue follow-up support for the 20 participating companies after the trip, including mentoring to review outcomes, and will manage the process closely so that the agreements translate into actual export contracts and joint ventures.
“The participating companies focused on identifying opportunities directly in the local market and turning cooperation into concrete plans,” said Kim Yong-woo, chief executive of the Busan Center for Creative Economy and Innovation. “We will spare no effort in providing wide-ranging support so that these opportunities lead to actual contracts and commercialization.”
#KoreanStartups#Vietnam#Busan#GlobalExpansion#InnoEx2026#StartupWheel
Original reporting by Cho Won-jin for Seoul Economic Daily.
AI-translated from Korean. Quotes from foreign sources are based on Korean-language reports and may not reflect exact original wording.
View Korean originalTranslation Policy
Most Read This Week
- 1American Becomes Korea’s Only Foreign Haenyeo, Diving Off Jeju
- 2Actor Lee Yong-ju of ‘The Blue Tower’ Dies at 44
- 3Jeju Police Chief Apologizes, Orders Review of All Missing-Person Cases
- 4Hyundai Launches Korea’s First SUV-Based “High-Roof” Palisade
- 5Chinese Cabbage Coated With Cancer-Causing Formaldehyde, Probe Finds
