On September 21, the Export-Import Bank of Korea (www.koreaexim.go.kr, Chairman Yong Hwan Kim, “ Korea Eximbank”) held a conference with 10 exporting SMEs in Daejon City and Chungnam Province.

The conference was held at the Daejon Hahiho Hotel to discuss difficulties faced by exporting SMEs in securing funds as a result of the credit crunch and slowdown in the real economy ensuing from the Eurozone fiscal crisis, as well as strategies to address such difficulties.

The conference was attended by CEOs of major SME exporters in Daejon City and Chungnam Province, including Seung-tae Kim of Dongyang Gangchul Group and Yong-gil Kim of KB Autosys Co. Ltd.

Chairman Yong Hwan Kim of Korea Eximbank commented, ”Korea Eximbank will promote shared growth between large corporations and SMEs through its proprietary Global PaSS Program, providing a total of KRW 1 trillion in financing at favorable rates to exporting SMEs by the end of the year.”

As of this month, Korea Eximbank concluded MOUs with 29 large corporations in export industries including automotive, shipbuilding, IT, power, and plant construction to promote balanced growth with SMEs, and for this purpose provided KRW 640 billion to their SME suppliers at favorable rates.

KB Autosys CEO Yong-gil Kim noted, “In the wake of the global financial crisis, Korean SMEs have often had difficulty obtaining export financing despite possessing advanced technologies. The schemes of financial institutions to assist SMEs need greater substance and continuity, as exemplified by Korea Eximbank’s Global PaSS Program.”

After the conference, Chairman Kim visited Ginhap Co. Ltd., a firm selected for the Bank’s Hidden Champion Program and a leading manufacturer of automotive parts in Daejon City.

Chairman Kim remarked during his meeting with Ginhap CEO Young-Sub Lee that “Korean automobiles are able to succeed in global markets thanks to outstanding companies like Ginhap who specialize in automotive parts. We will give such companies our full support and help them become Hidden Champions.”

Since taking office in February 2011, Chairman Kim has hosted 21 conferences with CEOs of exporters in different regions and personally visited numerous company sites.

On a related note, Korea Eximbank announced in July plans to support exporting SMEs exposed to the financial crisis by providing KRW 5 trillion in tailored financing.