Korea’s Hanwha Life Insurance said on Tuesday its fintech start-up incubator Dream Plus Gangnam in Seoul has welcomed a group of 40 MBA students from Columbia Business School led by Assistant Professor Daniel Keum after it was selected as an exemplary site for open innovation by the private Ivy League university.

The professor and students were briefed on the insurer’s Dream Plus projects and had a chance to interview incubator tenants. Students showed keen interest in the seamless chain system that links startups to large companies and investors. Topics they focused on include challenges in the penetration into overseas markets and regulatory burdens during discussion with the tenant businesses such as Sentbe and Ruxrobo that are considering market expansion outside Korea.

Dream Plus, the country’s first insurer-led incubator dedicated to fintech technology, was inaugurated on the fourth floor of the insurer‘s landmark 63 Building in Yeouido in Oct. 2016. The center has pursued open innovation aligned with Hanwha Group’s chairman Kim Seung-yeon to share capabilities between large companies and startups and grow side by side.

Hanwha’s open innovation strategy reflecting a global industry trend is very impressive, said Prof. Daniel Keum at the incubator.

By Kim Tae-sung and Minu Kim

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