Korean startups consider COIVD-19 an opportunity: survey

Korean startups find the COVID-19 pandemic positive for the country’s startup ecosystem in the future, a survey by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups showed on May 12.

Out of 492 respondents, 42.5 percent said the COVID-19 pandemic will bring about either a very positive or positive impact on the startup ecosystem. Almost 65 percent of them said that there will be more chances for new business ideas due to changes brought about by the pandemic, while 40 percent of the respondents also expect “untact” businesses to gain the momentum. Newly coined term untact refers to non-face-to-face contact and has been widely used in South Korea amid social distancing. 

Among those who are concerned about the post-COVID-19, 73 percent of them said they worry about a revenue decline due to weakening consumer sentiment.

The survey showed that startups see medical and educational sectors as the most promising industries post-COVID-19.

“The non-face-to-face sector is expected to emerge as a promising industry globally as the transition to the digital economy accelerates after COVID-19,” said Lee Soon-bae, director of the startup policy division at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups. “The government will provide policy support to help Korean startups in untact sectors lead the global market.”

A total of 492 startups participated in the survey that was conducted from April 10 to 30.

By Park Ga-young (gypark@heraldcorp.com)