Fosterbridge signs MOU with Kazakh Creative, extending Asia cooperation belt to Central Asia

MOU signed at Techsauce Global Summit 2026 in Bangkok on Thursday (local time)

Kazakh creative firms to gain access to global markets through Fosterbridge

Central Asian axis added to network spanning 30 countries and about 50 VCs

Park Jin-hyun (left), chairman of Fosterbridge, and Yerlan Kanalimov, chairman of the board of Kazakh Creative (Corporate Fund "Creative Industries Development Fund" of the Republic of Kazakhstan), pose for a photo after signing a memorandum of understanding at the Fosterbridge booth during the Techsauce Global Summit 2026 at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center in Bangkok, Thailand, on Thursday (local time). [Fosterbridge]

Global startup platform Fosterbridge announced Wednesday it has partnered with Kazakh Creative — the Corporate Fund "Creative Industries Development Fund" of the Republic of Kazakhstan — to serve as a bridge connecting promising Central Asian creative companies to global markets.

The two organizations signed a memorandum of understanding on Thursday (local time), aiming to help Kazakh creative-industry firms break into overseas markets and attract investment through Fosterbridge's global conference and accelerator programs.

Under the agreement, the two sides will cooperate on supporting the participation of official Kazakh delegations and creative companies at international conferences, and on jointly planning market-entry activities including showcases, pitching programs and exhibitions. Kazakh Creative will identify and recommend participating companies in Kazakhstan and coordinate with local government agencies and partners, while Fosterbridge will design and operate tailored programs and handle participant curation and connections to global investors and partners.

Fosterbridge's cooperation footprint has grown with each edition. In its second edition, the platform signed an MOU with Techsauce, Southeast Asia's largest startup platform, laying the groundwork for a Southeast Asian presence. In this year's third edition, it extended that axis to Central Asia. Having connected companies and investors through a network of about 50 venture capital firms across 30 countries, Fosterbridge has now established a cooperation belt stretching from Southeast Asia to Central Asia over two years.

The MOU was signed at an event hosted by Techsauce, the partner of Fosterbridge's second edition (FOSTERBRIDGE 2025 In Asia). The occasion carries particular significance: a venue that had served as a gateway to Southeast Asia has now become a channel for Central Asian companies to step onto the global stage.

Kazakh Creative is a public-natured corporate fund backed by Kazakhstani government policy support and budget, and operates its own government grant programs and investment-linkage mechanisms.

Representatives from South Korea and Kazakhstan pose for a photo after signing a memorandum of understanding at the Fosterbridge booth during the Techsauce Global Summit 2026 at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center in Bangkok, Thailand, on Thursday (local time). [Fosterbridge]

Meanwhile, Kazakhstan has been stepping up efforts to cultivate its creative industries as it seeks to move away from a resource-dependent economy. According to surveys by the Astana International Financial Centre and other bodies, Kazakhstan has more than 40,000 creative companies and more than 140,000 people working in the sector, yet creative industries account for only about 1 percent of GDP — well below the global average of roughly 5 percent. The Kazakhstani government has set a target of growing the creative-industry workforce to around 180,000 by 2029.

Yerlan Kanalimov, chairman of the board of Kazakh Creative, said Kazakhstan has many companies with strong technology and ideas but has not had enough opportunities to take the international stage. "We want to apply Fosterbridge's showcase, pitching programs and exhibitions to Kazakhstan — opening a path for our companies to meet Korea, and beyond that, to meet the world," he said. "We will grow Kazakhstani startups through Fosterbridge."

Fosterbridge ran a booth throughout the summit from Wednesday to Friday, hosting programs alongside global venture capital firms. Representatives from major VCs and startup support organizations across eight countries attended — including The Garrison of South Korea, IVS of Japan, BNI Ventures of Indonesia and the Korea Accelerator Industry Association — sharing regional investment environments and market-entry strategies while strengthening the global network.

Park Jin-hyun, chairman of Fosterbridge, said the platform has built cross-border networking with about 50 venture capital firms across 30 countries. "There are many companies that falter not because they lack technology, but because they cannot find a way to the world," he said. "Our role is to put Kazakhstani startups in front of global investors — to be that bridge, just as our name says."

Cooperation will move quickly to implementation. Fosterbridge has received an official invitation to an event in Kazakhstan in late October, where it will conduct an on-site review of local creative companies and the ecosystem. That visit will serve as the starting point for the two sides to launch their first joint linkage program in November.

Beyond Central Asia, Fosterbridge has been appointed as an ambassador to the Global Startup EXPO 2026, to be held in Osaka, Japan, from Oct. 5 to 7. The expo is an international deep tech-focused event co-organized by Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry along with local governments including Osaka and Kyoto, and is one of the fastest-rising flagship events in the startup ecosystem across six future technology sectors: AI and robotics, biotech and healthcare, quantum technology, aerospace, next-generation energy and others.

realbighead@heraldcorp.com