Belgium contributes to fund of funds in support of European 'tech champions'

The European Investment Bank (EIB) Group and five EU member states, including Belgium, have launched the European Tech Champions Initiative (ETCI). This "fund of funds" is specifically designed to support European tech companies that are already at a later stage of their development but might not be able to raise enough capital in Europe to compete globally.

The fund will launch with a total of 3.75 billion euros, 100 million of which will come from Belgium. Other countries like Spain, Germany, France and Italy have also committed to contributing to the ETCI, which the European Investment Fund manages.

The initiative should help address the funding gap that causes Europe's most promising innovative start-ups to rely on non-European capital. Currently, many of them either lack sufficient capital to compete on a global scale or are acquired by foreign competitors, which means a net loss for the European economy, explains the EIB Group.

Eliminating this "negative financing spiral" and closing the scale-up gap could create a large number of highly skilled jobs in Europe and stimulate growth, the initiators hope.

(BRV)

^{© PHOTO ANDRE PAIN / AFP}