548 Billion Won in Funding for 45 Mid-Sized Companies... "Focused Support for Exports"

Exclusive Loan Program for Mid-Sized Companies: “Rising Leaders 300”

Second-Half Support Plan Finalized

Number of Supported Companies Increased from 35 to 45

Support Size Raised from 466 Billion to 548 Billion Won

As demand for financial support by mid-sized companies increases in the second half of this year, the support size for the “Rising Leaders” loan program dedicated to mid-sized companies will be expanded to 548 billion won. Although mid-sized companies account for only 1.5% of all companies in Korea, they are responsible for 17.9% of the country's exports.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and Woori Bank announced on September 9 that 45 mid-sized companies have been selected as recipients of the Rising Leaders 300 program for the second half of 2026, and the total support plan has been finalized at 548 billion won.

The Rising Leaders 300 is a loan program jointly promoted by the Ministry and Woori Bank since 2023. Twice a year, mid-sized companies are selected and supported; by the first half of this year, a total of 225 companies had been selected with approximately 2 trillion won in loans provided. By 2027, a total of 4 trillion won in loans will be provided to 300 companies over five years.

In the second half of this year, the number of applicant companies increased from 36 in the first half to 64. Accordingly, the number of supported companies was expanded from 35 to 45, and the total support size was increased from 466 billion won to 548 billion won. In particular, support for exporting mid-sized companies was strengthened, increasing from 18 in the first half to 28 in the second half.

After the business application notice in July, a total of 45 mid-sized companies with competitiveness and innovation capabilities were selected through recommendations from expert institutions in four fields—exports, technology, ESG (environmental, social and governance), and artificial intelligence (AI) transformation—and financial screening by Woori Bank. These include Kolmar Holdings (holding company), Lion Chemtech (chemical products), and Stats ChipPAC Korea (semiconductor backend processing). The selected companies can apply for loans until March of next year. The Ministry will provide loans of up to 30 billion won per company, preferential interest rates of up to 1.0 percentage points, and customized consulting and other non-financial services tailored to the needs of each company.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.