Under the Small and Medium Enterprises Promotion Act, the Korea SMEs and Startups Agency may establish a company for assisting small and medium enterprises and startups in finding new markets for their products. Accordingly, the Korea SMEs and Startups Agency created the Small and Medium Business Distribution Center in December 1995 and has operated the center since then.

Nonetheless, domestic and international distribution environments are changing rapidly, including rapid growth in new distribution markets based on online and mobile and the emergence of distribution giants based on big capital. Furthermore, with the 4th Industrial Revolution, a new distribution environment is being established in connection with novel technologies such as artificial intelligence and big data analytics.

Currently, many small and medium enterprises report difficulties in finding markets for their products, and some also point out that it may be difficult to respond to rapidly changing distribution environments with the Small and Medium Business Distribution Center, which was established based on the conventional distribution environment.

In this regard, this Act aims to establish the Small and Medium Business Market Support Corporation, to strengthen public functions more than the current Small and Medium Business Distribution Center and ensure international reliability with its transparent management and surveillance system, and assign a role as a comprehensive support agency to find markets for small and medium enterprises’ products.

Details

A. Establish the Small and Medium Business Market Support Corporation to contribute to promoting small and medium enterprises and balanced growth in the people’s economy by facilitating sales of their products through market support and marketing projects (Article 1)

B. Define the Corporation’s capital as 200 billion won, consisting of accumulated funds transferred as contributions and capital from the central and local governments and public institutions under the Act on the Management of Public Institutions (Article 4)

C. Specify the Corporation’s scope as projects that assist in finding markets for small and medium enterprises’ products, provide support for related production, install and operate facilities to find markets for their products, establish distribution networks for their products, and support promotion, sales, and after-sales management (Article 10)

D. Allow the Corporation to require beneficiaries to pay for expenses and fees incurred for projects (Article 11)

E. Allow the Corporation to issue corporate bonds no more than twice the sum of capital and accumulated funds by resolution of its board of directors and the government to guarantee the repayment of principal for the corporate bonds issued by the Corporation to facilitate fund-raising (Article 13)

F. Require the Minister of SMEs and Startups to guide and supervise the scope of work defined by law for the Corporation (Article 16)

G. Specify that the Corporation comprehensively takes over the Small and Medium Business Distribution Center’s properties, bonds, debt obligations, and other rights and obligations upon the Corporation’s establishment (Addenda Article 5)