"Which bank do you most want to cooperate with?""We'd like to work with all of them, but this time, we'd like to collaborate with Hana Bank. I heard that Hana Bank is focusing on financing for small business owners. I think there are many areas where we can cooperate."Yang Seung-woo, CEO of wholesale distribution platform Namdo Market, answered the moderator's question this way at the 'D.CAMP Startup OI #Financial Sector' pitching event held at FRONT1 in Mapo-gu, Seoul, on the morning of October 31st (last month). The event, designed to match startups with the financial sector for open innovation, featured five startups—Namdo Market, Returnzero, AIMS, BigTechPlus, and Antock Co., Ltd.—who took the stage to present their business models and participate in Q&A sessions.
What made this pitching event different from typical ones was that the presenters didn't just stop at presenting their business models. The five startups focused their presentations on which financial institutions they could conduct open innovation with and what synergies they could create. Unlike the usual audience, which consists primarily of venture capital (VC) reviewers, this event was attended by about 100 people involved in new business from financial institutions such as Kookmin Bank, Shinhan Bank, Hana Bank, Woori Bank, KakaoBank, Toss Bank, and BNK Financial Group.
Ham Bae-il, CEO of the real estate platform BigTechPlus, said, "We want to create loan products in cooperation with the financial sector," adding, "Cooperation will be possible with the new business that Toss Bank is promoting." Park Jae-joon, CEO of the corporate analysis platform Antock Co., Ltd., also stated, "We can support decision-making related to corporate products for investment institutions and financial companies," and "We want to create a point of contact with NH Nonghyup Bank and Hana Bank."
The judges and audience members voted on the companies they thought would generate the greatest open innovation synergy on the spot. Returnzero won first place (Startup of the Year Award), Namdo Market took second (Outstanding Startup Noticed by Financial Institutions Award), and BigTechPlus secured third place (Startup Noticed by Investors Award). In line with the event's purpose, the 'Startup-Friendly Financial Institution Manager' award, chosen by the founders, was also presented. The award went to Deputy General Manager Lee Jae-jun of IBK Industrial Bank of Korea.
...
