Blended Finance

Between 2014-2022, over 150 Irish companies have been successful in applying for funding from Europe's flagship EIC Accelerator programme (previously called SME instrument under Horizon 2020). €223 million have been awarded in the form of grants, equity investments or a combination of the two: blended finance.The EIC Accelerator programme helps high-risk, innovative SMEs and start-ups willing to...

At Winnovart, we are currently researching the impact of blended funding programmes on the European innovation & investment ecosystem. We believe that blended funding (mixing grants & equity investments) is the most interesting development in the European grants-funding ecosystem for many years, promising to reshape its future.The EIC Fund is one of the largest blended-funding programmes in...

The European Innovation Council (EIC) Fund is the investment vehicle of the EIC Accelerator programme - the European Commission's flagship innovation funding programme. With a budget of €3 billion from 2021-2027, the EIC Fund is positioned to be one of Europe's largest deep-tech venture capitalists (VCs) during this period. Through the structure of the fund, a minimum of €3 billion of private...

€1.35 billion in the form of grants, equity investments or blended finance were awarded to firms in the health sector between 2014-2022. 800+ health projects were funded by Europe's flagship EIC Accelerator programme (formerly known as SME instrument under Horizon 2020). The EIC Accelerator programme helps high-risk, innovative SMEs and start-ups willing to develop and commercialise new products,...

The EIC Fund is Europe's flagship blended funding programme, combining EC innovation grants with equity investments from private investors (typically VCs). The biggest programme of this kind in Europe with a substantial multi-annual investment budget. There is, however, a significant gap between its promise and current delivery.This is our series of Explainers, aiming to clarify key aspects of...

The EIC Fund is Europe's flagship blended funding programme, combining EC innovation grants with equity investments from private investors (typically VCs). The biggest programme of this kind in Europe with a substantial multi-annual investment budget. There is, however, a significant gap between its promise and current delivery.This is our series of Explainers, aiming to clarify key aspects of...

The EIC Fund is Europe's flagship blended funding programme, combining EC innovation grants with equity investments from private investors (typically VCs). The biggest programme of this kind in Europe with a substantial multi-annual investment budget. There is, however, a significant gap between its promise and current delivery.This is our series of Explainers, aiming to clarify key aspects of...

The EIC Fund was incorporated in June 2020 and operational in September 2020 during the EIC pilot phase (2018-20). Since the creation of the EIC Fund under the Horizon 2020 programme, 341 companies have been selected for equity investment in the form of blended funding or equity-only funding. However, only 89 of these companies have managed to sign a deal with the EIC Fund. Why do companies have...

At Winnovart, we are currently researching the impact of blended funding programmes on the European innovation & investment ecosystem. We believe that blended funding (mixing grants & equity investments) is the most interesting development in the European grants-funding ecosystem for many years, promising to reshape its future.

The EIC Fund is Europe's flagship blended funding programme, combining EC innovation grants with equity investments from private investors (typically VCs). The biggest programme of this kind in Europe with a substantial multi-annual investment budget. There is, however, a significant gap between its promise and current delivery.This is our series of Explainers, aiming to clarify key aspects of...