Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) need tailored solutions. We built the products offered under the InvestEU SME window on experience from previous EU financial instruments established under the COSME programme, Horizon 2020 and others. The InvestEU SME window provides access to and availability of finance primarily for SMEs, including innovators, SMEs in cultural and creative sectors, and small mid-cap companies.
Under the SME window of InvestEU, the Commission will support a single integrated guarantee facility implemented by the EIF. It will target SMEs perceived as high risk or having insufficient collateral, including innovative businesses, those in cultural and creative sectors, the SMEs transitioning from resource and energy intensive models towards more sustainable ones, and SMEs adopting digital business practices.
InvestEU's SME window will also support equity financing for SMEs and small midcaps in EU policy special interest areas such as space and defence, sustainability, digitalisation, innovation, gender-smart financing, deep and green tech. For example, we will pool funding from the EU, EU countries, and the private sector to increase access to equity finance for innovative SMEs and start-ups that develop and adopt green tech solutions. InvestEU will allow financing along all development stages from start-up to scale-up, and IPO. It will help leverage private funding from investors such as business angels, family offices, venture capital funds, pension funds, and insurance companies.
How to access the InvestEU financial instruments
If you are an SME or an entrepreneur looking for debt or equity finance and would like to see which financial intermediaries are working with InvestEU, please visit the Access to Finance portal.
Representatives of financial institutions, such as banks or equity investors, will have the opportunity to learn how to benefit from the InvestEU guarantee and become an EU financial intermediary.The European Investment Fund launched the calls for expression of interest for guarantee products and the calls for expression of interest for equity products. InvestEU will offer a guarantee to financial and credit institutions, funds and other intermediaries who provide debt and equity financing.
More information
EU Finance Days
Under the EU’s budget for 2021-2027, dedicated EU programmes were launched. Financial institutions, national promotional banks, business support structures and multipliers are keen to get first-hand information on the new EU business support programmes such as the InvestEU, the European Innovation Council and the Single Market Programme.
Coordinated by the Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs, the European Commission services, Representations and the main implementing partners organise the EU Finance Days 2023 together. We will present the financial and support programmes to relevant stakeholders through workshops targeting different countries. During the events, participants will also be able to ask our experts questions.
COSME Financial Instruments 2014-2020
The Programme for the Competitiveness of Enterprises and Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (COSME) financial instruments ran between 2014-2020. Resources from the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) complemented the COSME financial instruments.
Thanks to the combined efforts of the COSME Loan Guarantee Facility and the European Fund for Strategic Investments, more than 800,000 SMEs received over €50 billion of debt financial support (loans, lease, etc.) in total. Under the COSME Equity Facility for Growth, almost 350 businesses received equity financing, with overall investment reaching more than €2.5 billion. Latest information on the implementation status of the COSME financial instruments is available at the EIF website.
The 'EU financing – real benefit for businesses' brochure provides information on the COSME/EFSI results as of December 2018 and case studies highlighting the diversity of supported projects and businesses.