European Commission unveils five measures to support business angels in the EU

This week the European Commission announced five new actions to support business angels under its EU Startup and Scaleup Strategy, Tech.eu reports. tech.euTech.eutech.euOpen source ↗ The measures aim to improve access to early-stage investment opportunities, strengthen angel investor networks and make it easier to invest across European borders.

The five actions

The EU Innovation Platform is to become a single entry point connecting innovators and investors. It would give business angels and angel network managers access to investment-ready, EU-backed projects. The crowdfunding action is a workshop bringing together angel investors and crowdfunding communities, potentially followed by support for angel-led fundraising and cross-border investment.

For cross-border co-investment, the Commission plans to map existing angel ecosystems and national co-investment schemes with InvestEU Advisory, in order to identify gaps and opportunities for further support. European Angel Accreditation would be a common framework for verifying angel investors. Member States could use it to extend tax incentives and co-investment opportunities across borders.

The fifth action, the European Angel Investor Network, extends the European Innovation Council (EIC) Trusted Investor Network to business angels. It would give them access to early-stage investment opportunities from the EIC pipeline. tech.euTech.eutech.euOpen source ↗

EBAN's response

The European Business Angels Network (EBAN) welcomed the proposals while calling for more ambitious measures to address fragmentation across Europe's investment ecosystem. EBAN was founded in 1999 with the support of the European Commission and represents more than 130 member organisations. It supports the Commission's broader efforts, including the proposed EU Inc, but argues that Europe needs stronger links between research commercialisation, angel investment, venture capital and growth financing.

EBAN's recommendations centre on a streamlined European co-investment scheme that would reduce risk for angels, mobilise additional capital and support startups with strong scale-up potential, regardless of where they are based. It also backs extending national co-investment schemes to countries that do not yet have them, and a common accreditation framework so that angels are verified once and recognised across borders.

According to EBAN, these measures should build on existing national and regional investment networks rather than create parallel structures. It asks for clear implementation timelines and measurable outcomes for founders and investors. tech.euTech.eutech.euOpen source ↗

EBAN President Jesper Jarlbaek said: "We believe the Commission is moving in a very positive direction. EBAN is keen to help turn this ambition into practical results."