Flexible digital rules could add 21,000 jobs in Korea: Oxford Economics

A more flexible digital regulatory environment could increase startup formation in Korea by 15 percent and venture capital investment by nearly 20 percent, creating about 21,000 additional startup jobs by 2035, research showed Thursday. The findings come from a new Oxford Economics study, "Digital Regulations and the Startup Ecosystem in South Korea," which examined how regulatory choices could affect the country's startup sector. Under a more enabling policy framework, Korea could see about 240 additional startups formed each year and 2.4 trillion won ($1.7 billion) more in annual venture capital investment between 2026 and 2035. By contrast, a more restrictive approach could reduce startup formation by 8 percent and investment by 10 percent. That would amount to about 130 fewer startups and 1.3 trillion won less in investment annually, as well as around 12,000 fewer startup jobs by 2035. The report said Korea's digital regulatory system places strong emphasis on privacy, security and national interests, drawing in part on approaches pioneered in the European Union. "South Korea's startu