30 Years of Venture: Beyond Quantitative Growth, Launching a Qualitative Leap

## Ventures Reshape the Korean Economy: Beyond Quantitative Growth to a Qualitative Leap The '1st Innovation Venture Forum,' held today (the 22nd) at the Korea Federation of SMEs in Yeouido, declared a shift in the economic landscape of the Republic of Korea. The astonishing statistic that jobs created by venture companies have already surpassed the total employment of the nation's top four major conglomerates proved that ventures are no longer 'the future' but 'the present' protagonists. Jin Byung-chae, President of the Korea Academy of Small Business, emphasized that over the past 30 years, venture companies have driven national economic growth and played a pivotal role in transforming the traditional manufacturing-centric economic structure into a knowledge-intensive industry. However, he stressed that now is precisely the time to prepare for a new leap forward. At the forum that day, bold solutions for the qualitative growth of the venture ecosystem were presented. President Jin presented the stock option system and tax reforms for attracting talented individuals, groundbreaking tax reforms for attracting private capital, and the overhaul of M&A regulations to revitalize the investment recovery market as urgent tasks. Choo Moon-gap, Head of the Korea Federation of SMEs, also urged for the transition of large-enterprise-centric industrial policies to an SME and venture-centric ecosystem and called for the enactment of the 「Smart Manufacturing Industry Promotion Act」 for the widespread adoption of AI factories. Professor Bae Jong-hoon of Seoul National University suggested a policy paradigm shift from 'survival rate-based support' to 'fair competition support' now that entrepreneurial risk has decreased due to the advancement of startup support systems. Specific measures such as the introduction of symmetrical regulations, the discovery of ideas at the value chain level, and the establishment of shared data centers were also presented. Professor Park Sung-hyuk of KAIST focused on the 'flip' method of relocating headquarters overseas as a solution for Korean startups to advance globally and introduced the 'deferred flip' methodology. President Jin, in the results of his regional economic revitalization research, pointed out the limitations of attracting large corporations and analyzed that fostering venture companies would instead drive regional economic growth, job creation, and technological innovation in the regions. He emphasized that a three-pronged approach—government financial investment, creation of a regional-centric private investment ecosystem, and talent cultivation linked to key regional universities—is essential for this. Lee Jung-min, Secretary-General of the Korea Venture Business Association, urged for elevating venture policies to the top agenda of national economic policy and proposed a comprehensive policy shift including mandating venture and startup investments for 68 statutory funds, reforming working hour systems such as the 52-hour work week, and introducing national targets for regulatory innovation standards. This forum holds significant meaning in that it presented a practical blueprint for the Korean venture ecosystem to evolve beyond quantitative expansion into a cradle of innovative companies with global competitiveness. Now, beyond simply increasing the number of startups, it is a time when bold policy execution for qualitative leaps is required.