Korea Eximbank announced on October 8 that an additional 35 candidate companies have been selected for the Korean Hidden Champion Initiative meaning that phase 1 of the initiative, regarding the selection of 100 Hidden Champion candidates this year, has been completed.

※ Korean Hidden Champions (KHCs): an SME with exports of more than USD 100 million and a global leader in its respective sector.

The Selection Committee of Korea Eximbank selects candidates for KHCs based on 1) technology, 2) growth potential, 3) CEO capacity, and 4) financial stability.

Korea Eximbank selected 34 and 31 companies in March and June of this year, respectively. As of the end of September, the candidates have already received over KRW 1.2 trillion in financing, 20% more than the KRW 1 trillion initially planned.

For candidates of the initiative, Korea Eximbank introduced “one-stop packaged services” to provide needed financing at each stage of the value chain in accordance with the master plans established by the candidates and experts.

※ An example of Korea Eximbank “one-stop packaged services” to company A: Provision of a lump sum loan of KRW 56 billion
- KRW 20 billion as Facility Expansion Credit
- KRW 20 billion as Export Credit
- USD 10 million as Overseas Investment Credit
- KRW 5 billion as Import Credit, etc.

In addition, Korea Eximbank improved its credit policies and streamlined internal approval procedures in order to improve customer services.

Chairman Kim of Korea Eximbank stated, “For phase 1 of the initiative this year, we have concentrated on selecting 100 Korean Hidden Champion candidates and establishing a comprehensive support system. Next year, we plan to provide even more substantial support to the candidate companies in order to increase their global competitiveness and help them become Korean Hidden Champions.”

With plans to foster 300 Korean Hidden Champions by 2019 through the provision of KRW 20 trillion in financing and comprehensive non-financial services, Korea Eximbank will continue to select at least 100 candidates in 2011.