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Second batch of EIC Fund investments (EIC Accelerator blended finance): High-risk high-impact projects at solid companies

June 7, 2021

The list of investment deals made by the EIC (European Innovation Council) fund has been recently updated including six new operations with a quite different profile than previous ones. The new operations are listed below:

CompanyCountryMissionField/Technology
NextwaveFrance
The next generation of hybrid location technology and solutions for IoT.
ICT (IOT)
EpiEndoIcelandApproach to inflammatory disorders that focuses on the epithelial barrier integrity.Health (Pharma)
AntofenolFranceNatural, eco-designed and anti-microbial products from agricultural waste.Cleantech (Waste)
LixeaEstoniaInnovative biomass fractionation process using low-cost ionic liquids.Cleantech (Biomass)
DemetaFranceChemistry made greener, safer and more efficient.Cleantech (Materials)

The profile of these operations is quite different from the first batch as we can see 3 cleantech companies and significantly lower amounts. The average key amounts for all the operations closed until today by the EIC Fund are as follows:

Average grant2.097.545€
Average EIC Equity5.497.601€
Average Total Equity11.192.308€

The EIC continues making a matching investment strategy in which other investors provide about 50% of the total round.

When looking at the company profile, it corresponds to a company with a significant turnover (taken from public data) and number of employees. This reality might contrast with the so called high-risk profile of the projects that the EIC is aiming for. The conclusion may be that, although the EIC is looking for high-risk high-impact projects, they also want to invest in solid companies with a proven track-record and product-market fit. There are no investments so far in pre-revenue companies. Risky projects but solid companies.

I believe this is very relevant information for all EIC applicants. Many pre-revenue micro-enterprises are applying to the EIC blended finance operations but their chance of success might be limited.

Average turnover5.085.438€
Average number of employees41,15

In terms of geography, there are 5 french companies, 1 in Germany, 1 in Denmark, 1 in Belgium, 1 in Netherlands, 1 in Iceland, 1 in Finland, 1 in Estonia and 1 in Sweden. It would be interesting to know the reason behind the striking success of France-based companies.

Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay

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