Vietnamese start-ups will have the opportunity to bring their creative ideas to the Republic of Korea (RoK) and get the full support for their month-long settlement in RoK if they win at the K-Startup Grand Challenge 2018.

The K-Startup Grand Challenge 2018 was launched in Ha Noi on 24 May by the Korea IT Cooperation Centre (KICC) and the Viet Nam Software and IT Services Association (VINASA), with the aim of building an open start-up ecosystem to assist start-ups in expanding to Asian markets.

The K-Startup Grand Challenge 2018 selected Viet Nam as one of the main countries to hold the regional audition which is scheduled for 9-10 July in Ha Noi and 11-12 July in Ho Chi Minh City.

The top 80 teams selected by the judging accelerators will be invited to stay in the RoK, and they will receive a total of 11,130 USD each to participate in a 3.5 month-long accelerator programme.

Meanwhile, the top 40 start-ups selected will be provided with a total of 22,727 USD each to support their settlement in the RoK and the top 4 teams will be rewarded with grants of up to 100,000 USD.

Impressive start-ups may be offered equity investment opportunities from accelerators and local enterprises.

Besides Viet Nam, the K-Startup Grand Challenge 2018 will be held in Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Hong Kong (China), and Taiwan (China).

After two years, the programme has successfully helped 41 start-ups to become established in the RoK which has attracted a total 26 million USD worth of investment from 24 investors.

"Participating in the programme, start-ups will have the opportunity to take part in professional training courses, receive consultancy from leading experts, and get access to sources of investment while connecting with RoK partners in order to develop and expand to markets in the Asian region," said VINASA Vice President Mai Duy Quang.

(Source: NDO/ DA NANG Today)