South Korea
South Korea has a program called K-Startup Grand Challenge to encourage foreign investment into the country. Regardless, these foreign investors face a lot of challenges.
Language barrier
Languages used in South Korea include standard Korean, Korean dialects, English, Chinese, and Japanese. The widely spoken language is standard Korea. This is a huge challenge to investors because they have to rely on language support every now and then to communicate effectively with the locals.
South Korea has enforced Draconian laws, which pose challenges to foreign startups. There is a via acquisition program, OASIS, which helps foreign investors to get a CIS with ease without having to invest $100,000. However, there have been complaints that the program is rigid and takes an investor three weeks to 6 months to get a visa. Also, companies are mandated to hire five local citizens for every foreigner.
Even with the support of the K-challenge program, startups in South Korea face a problem in being accepted by the local citizens. Many companies make a mistake of sending foreigners into business meetings with south Korean countries, and many end up failing. Foreign investors are disadvantaged because they don’t fully understand the market.
Ramirez, E. (2017). Why entrepreneurs come to South Korea. – And why they don’t. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/elaineramirez/2017/05/25/why-entrepreneurs-come-to-south-korea-and-why-they-dont/#5a3114307dbf