Seven new financial tools to enhance entrepreneurship and market liquidity are to be activated in the near future. These are actions that will focus on the areas of energy, infrastructure, growing companies, startups and strategic businesses.

These financial instruments start with EUR 1.15 billion. euro, funds which, with leverage, are estimated to exceed EUR 4 billion. euro.

New financial instruments

Planning for the coming months includes increasing public participation in Equifund, operating a pilot business angels program to finance business plans at an early stage, creating co-investment capital to attract foreign institutional investors to fast-growing Greek companies, and providing venture capital in the fields of energy, circular economy and basic infrastructure.

With capital 400 million euros, which with leverage is expected to reach €3 billion. The new action "Venture capital for energy and critical infrastructure projects" will be launched.

For the creation of a mechanism to facilitate the preparation of projects (Project Preparation Facility) with the aim of enhancing the preparation and implementation of strategic priority infrastructure investment projects, a financial program with initial capital will be "opened" 50 million euros.

For the creation of a pilot program of co-investments of Business Angels in cooperation with the European Investment Fund, budgeted 25 million euro.

With capital 100 mill. euros will launch the Soft financing programme to support the start-up entrepreneurship , which will be a repayable aid programme, estimated to support more than 1 200 innovative start-ups.

The design also includes the an increase of 50 million. euros of public participation in Equifund, which was set up in 2016 and was initially endowed with EUR 200 million; euro from the Operational Programme "Competitiveness, Entrepreneurship, Innovation" (EPAnEK) and € 60 million euro from the European Investment Fund (EIF). Equifund resources leverage venture capital at a rate of 5, i.e. they generate a total of five times more investment.

The largest part of the funding to date concerns early stage window at a rate of 44%, while 38% finances innovative and research business projects (innovation window).

The program "Co-financing (loans) together with Greek and foreign credit institutions in strategic sectors of the Greek economy" will be channeled 400 million euro.

While the program "Co-investment facility for attracting foreign institutional investors aiming at fast-growing Greek companies" has been budgeted 100 mill. euros.