Busan's startup ecosystem is increasingly moving past the so-called "death valley" stage and advancing directly into the capital market. As more locally based startups demonstrate technological capability and profitability through successful initial public offerings (IPOs), signs of change are emerging in Korea's investment and listing structure, which has long been centered on the Seoul metropolitan area. Combined with full-cycle support from the Busan Metropolitan Government and startup support institutions, an ecosystem linking "regional growth to listing" is also taking more concrete shape, observers say.
According to the Busan Metropolitan Government and the Busan Center for Creative Economy & Innovation on Friday, about 30 locally based startups are currently preparing for listing. The industries involved are expanding into senior care, logistics technology, e-commerce and biotech, rapidly broadening the IPO base. Notably, unlike in the past when companies relocated their headquarters to the metropolitan area after attracting investment, a growing number of firms are pursuing listings while remaining in the region. This shows that a path for regional startups to grow independently and enter the capital market is becoming a reality.
A symbolic case of this trend is Caredoc. Starting in Busan, the company secured both profitability and scale before launching its IPO, making it a representative "regional growth-to-listing" model. Caredoc has built a "total care" structure spanning senior housing, care matching, nursing and home care services, posting cumulative transactions of 300 billion won ($220 million) and serving more than 10,000 customers per month. The company recently selected Korea Investment & Securities as its lead underwriter and launched listing procedures, and is pursuing more than 20 billion won in pre-IPO funding. Its bid carries significant symbolic weight as the first IPO attempt in Korea's senior care industry, backed by a stable revenue structure and scalability.
Technology-based firms are following the same path. Locus Korea has maintained average annual growth of 158 percent with its AI-based logistics operating system "Indition," and is advancing its technology with an eye toward integration with humanoid robots. Based on this growth, the company is targeting a listing in 2029. Other firms in various industries, including Socialbean (second half of 2026) and Medpark (first half of 2027), are also lined up in the IPO pipeline, with "Busan-born listings" expected to continue over the next two to three years.
What these firms share in common is "profitability-based growth." Travel luggage and express delivery platform Zimcarry has maximized operational efficiency through a machine learning-based dispatch algorithm and demand forecasting system, expanding its customer base without additional marketing costs. Through an expansion strategy centered on airports and KTX high-speed rail hubs, the company has naturally strengthened its market dominance, a case viewed as proof of product-market fit (PMF). Having secured both profitability and scalability rather than simply growing in size, the firm also meets the standards demanded by the IPO market.
Ultimately, the consecutive listing challenges by Busan startups are the result of corporate technological capability combined with the local government's support system. While past support was limited to helping firms survive, it has now evolved toward improving corporate fundamentals and enabling entry into the capital market. The Busan Metropolitan Government is strengthening the listing foundation through expanded budgets and regulatory easing, and the close-knit incubation systems of the Busan Center for Creative Economy & Innovation and the Busan Technology Startup Investment Agency are serving as a key pathway for startups to cross the death valley and reach IPO. If this structure takes hold, the "grow locally, list publicly" model is likely to move beyond a temporary phenomenon and establish itself as a new standard.
"When a company's will to innovate is combined with policy support, it leads to the achievement of listing," a Busan Metropolitan Government official said. "We will continue to strengthen support so that the Busan-born IPO trend can lead to the structural improvement of the regional economy."
