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Busan Metropolitan City Participates in ‘IVS 2025 Kyoto’ to Lay the Foundation for Startup Entry into the Japanese Market

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Busan Metropolitan City (Mayor Park Heong-joon) and the Busan Startup Investment Agency (President Seo Jong-goon) announced that they participated in ‘IVS 2025 Kyoto,’ held in Japan from July 2 to 4, establishing an important foothold for attracting investment and entering the Japanese market for local companies.

○ IVS is Japan’s largest startup conference.
○ The event was attended by Busan Metropolitan City, the Busan Startup Investment Agency, Slash B Slash, and four promising startups representing Busan.

<Overview of IVS 2025 Kyoto>

• ●(Event Name) IVS (Infinity Ventures Summit) 2025

• ●(Date & Venue) July 2 (Wed) – July 4 (Fri), Miyakomesse, Kyoto

• ●(Host) Headline Japan, Kyoto Prefecture, Kyoto City

• ●(Purpose) A global platform that connects innovative business insights and cutting-edge technologies, aiming toward the future of entrepreneurship and technological advancement worldwide

This participation was part of Busan’s ‘Global Exchange and Investment Attraction Support Project,’ which aims to strengthen the global competitiveness of local startups and establish a foundation for entering overseas markets.
○ Through this initiative, Busan Metropolitan City supported various preparatory programs to help the participating startups successfully enter the Japanese market and attract investment.
○ The city focused on capacity-building by conducting pre-event workshops and IR coaching to enable participating companies to achieve meaningful outcomes at the event.

The four participating startups* achieved remarkable results, including 88 buyer consultations and over 8 investment consultations. These achievements were largely attributed to side events organized by Busan during the main conference, which facilitated broad exchanges by inviting investors from across Asia.

• ●Participating Companies: ▲Crosshub (Identity verification service for foreign tourists and residents), ▲Slash B Slash (NFC-based mobile accessories), ▲FXIP (Collaborative product planning using IP), ▲CKBridge (Blockchain-based B2B trade platform)

In particular, Crosshub and FXIP garnered interest from global venture capital firms such as Plug and Play Japan, receiving investment consideration and recognition for their growth potential.

Additionally, Slash B Slash attracted attention from local investors, including GENDA Capital, a Japanese investment firm specializing in entertainment and intellectual property (IP) businesses, and is expected to secure actual investment in the near future.
○ The participating companies successfully operated booths in the conference’s main program, “Startup Market,” showcasing their innovative technologies and business models to investors and stakeholders.
○ All four companies also actively engaged in side events hosted by Busan Metropolitan City, directly communicating with investors to explore new business opportunities.

The city’s delegation also met with Japan’s largest corporate venture capital (CVC) firm, Z Venture Capital, to discuss growth opportunities for local startups. The delegation visited the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) to explore the startup landscape in Japan and devise strategies for global expansion.

○ Z Venture Capital was established through the merger of Yahoo Japan Capital and LINE Ventures and actively invests in Korean startups. Busan engaged in robust discussions, including extending an invitation to Z Venture Capital to participate in ‘FLY ASIA’ scheduled for September this year.

Furthermore, Busan plans to continue expanding the local startup ecosystem by preparing for participation in global events such as ‘SWITCH’ in Singapore (October) and ‘BIBAN’ in the Middle East (November), to secure global market entry and attract investment for regional companies.

○ In collaboration with the Korea Startup Promotion Agency, Busan will participate with a K-Startup pavilion and is currently recruiting and selecting companies until the end of July.

Nam Dong-woo, Director General of Finance and Startup Policy, stated, “Beyond simply supporting businesses, Busan will continue to build strong networks with major startup cities across Asia and provide unwavering support so that promising Busan-based companies can achieve tangible business outcomes in the global market.”