{"id":8677,"date":"2021-01-07T13:52:44","date_gmt":"2021-01-07T13:52:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.innovationnewsnetwork.com\/?p=8677"},"modified":"2021-01-07T13:52:44","modified_gmt":"2021-01-07T13:52:44","slug":"announcing-the-first-equity-investment-through-the-european-innovation-council-fund","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.innovationnewsnetwork.com\/announcing-the-first-equity-investment-through-the-european-innovation-council-fund\/8677\/","title":{"rendered":"Announcing the first equity investment through the European Innovation Council Fund"},"content":{"rendered":"
42 innovative start-ups and small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) will together receive equity investment for science and development to scale up breakthrough innovations in health, circular economy<\/a>, advanced manufacturing, and other areas.<\/p>\n Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth said: \u201cEurope has many innovative, talented startups, but too often these companies remain small or relocate elsewhere. This new form of financing \u2013 combining grants and equity \u2013 is unique to the European Innovation Council. It will bridge the funding gap for highly innovative companies, unlock additional private investments and enable them scale up in Europe.\u201d<\/p>\n The equity investments, ranging from \u20ac500 to \u20ac15m per beneficiary, complement the grant financing, which has already been provided through the European Innovation Council<\/a> Accelerator Pilot to enable companies to scale up faster. This is the first time the Commission has made direct equity or quasi-equity investments, namely equity investment blended with a grant, in startup companies, with ownership stakes expected to range from 10% to 25%.<\/p>\n Under the European Innovation Council, a total of 293 companies have already been selected for funding worth over \u20ac563m in grants since December 2019. Among those, 159 companies have been selected to additionally receive the new equity investments from the fund. The 42 companies announced today are the first of this group to successfully pass the evaluation and due diligence process. The other 117 companies are in the pipeline to receive investments pending the outcome of the relevant process.<\/p>\nThe first EU company to receive funding<\/h3>\n