Benjamin Brand
Korea Trade Investment Promotion Agency, otherwise known as KOTRA, operates under South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry & Energy (MOTIE), as the national trade and investment promotion organization. KOTRA is a governmental, non-profit agency which promotes and facilitates bilateral business relationships between Korea and the world since its foundation in 1962.
Since inception, KOTRA has facilitated Korea's rapid, export-led economic development through various trade promotion activities such as SME export promotion, trade info services, government-to-government export, foreign investment in Korea (FDI) promotion, and business matchmaking. KOTRA maintains over 120 offices in 82 countries with 13 in South Korea alone.
I am currently co-leading North America's Startup GP program. A collaboration project between KOTRA's Global Partnering and Overseas Startup Assistance Program. This effort is a part of Korean President Park Geun-hye's "Creative Economy" policy designed to help promising Korean startups connect with leading Corporate Venture Capital firms in the US for potential partnership and investment opportunities.
Lastly, I am the Head of Medical GP. Connect US based Medical and Pharmaceutical companies with Korean counterparts and implement R&D projects, which are co-funded by the Korean government, and I.P. licensing.