Ministry to give 45 promising mid-sized firms W548b in support

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy has selected 45 promising mid-sized companies for the second half of this year under Rising Leaders 300. The dedicated financing program aims to help such firms grow into global leaders. Each selected company can receive a loan of up to 30 billion won ($22.3 million), along with nonfinancial support such as tailored consulting.

The ministry said Wednesday that it would provide a total of 548 billion won in financial support to the mid-sized companies chosen for the program's second-half cycle this year.

Rising Leaders 300 is a financing program dedicated to mid-sized companies that the ministry and Woori Bank have jointly run since 2023. Its goal is to identify promising mid-sized firms across four areas -- exports, technology development, environmental, social and governance management, and digital transformation -- and help them become global leaders.

Selected companies receive a loan ceiling of up to 30 billion won each and a preferential interest rate cut of up to 1.0 percentage point. The program also offers nonfinancial support, including financial consulting tailored to each company's needs. The ministry additionally provides policy financing, such as loans, guarantees and funds, to support the growth of promising mid-sized firms.

As of the first half of this year, a total of 225 companies had been selected for the program, receiving about 2 trillion won in combined financial support.

For the second half, demand for financial support among mid-sized companies grew, prompting the ministry to expand the number of beneficiaries from 35 in the first half to 45. The financial support ceiling also rose, from 466 billion won to 548 billion won.

The ministry particularly focused on export-driven mid-sized companies, expanding their number from 18 in the first half to 28 in the second half. Mid-sized companies make up just 1.5 percent of all companies in Korea but account for 17.9 percent of the country's exports.

Specialized agencies recommended candidates in each field following the program's application announcement in July. They included KOTRA for exports, the Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology for technology, the Korea Federation of Mid-sized Enterprises for ESG, and the Korea Industrial Intelligence Association for digital transformation. Woori Bank then screened the candidates and selected 45 mid-sized companies with strong competitiveness and innovation capacity. They included Kolmar Holdings, a holding company; Lion Chemtech, a chemical products maker; and StatsChipPac Korea, a semiconductor back-end process company.