The Hellenic Development Bank of Investments (HDBI) officially announced the coming into existence of a new €60M public equity and quasi-equity fund aimed at supporting innovative startups. The AccelerateTT fund is the result of the cooperation of HDBI and the Ministry of Development and Investments and will be used for creating VC funds that involve private investors. In the form of fund-of-funds, Accelerate TT seeks to cover the whole financing chain of Greek startups that have extroverted characteristics and scalability prospects. Currently, HDBI is looking for investor proposals for the establishment and management of VC funds. The new fund will be targeting newly founded startups with no market track that are not listed in any kind of stock exchange, as well as companies that have been at the market for less than 7 years after their first commercial sale and maintain their establishment in Greece at the time of investment.
What we know
The total duration of the fund is expected to be at least 10 years. Each investment period will be of about 4 years, with a possibility for follow-up investments. The HDBI is to be an exclusive part of the VC funds that will be managed by private investors, with its financial participation reaching up to 80%. The rest of the financing will be secured by private investment, and the maximum amount of initial investment in startups and SMEs is €300K. The total financing, which will be directed to startups is expected to surpass €120M.
Startups are expected to present scalable ideas and feature an innovative element of their products or services. The selection criteria involve assessing a company’s management team, investment strategy, and history, as well as the target market size and prospects, and the geographical scope. As noted by Giannis Tsakiris, Deputy Minister of Development and Investment, the AccelerateTT program is a new financial product that will facilitate the accelerated development of innovative startups, while also stimulating the local ecosystem. Promoting technology transfer, he added, will have multiple benefits for the Greek economy. It also became clear that the long-term plans of the government include a coordinated program and the development of strategies for stimulating entrepreneurship among young people.
The story of HDBI
HDBI, previously known as TANEO, has a history of over 20 years and is known to be one of the first institutions to promote the establishment of a Greek VC market. As a fund-of-funds, it participates in joint investment schemes through newly created VC funds on the basis of the equal footing principle. As of 2018, the institution had facilitated the establishment of 11 funds, including a €400M co-investment project with Mubadala, the investment arm of the United Arab Emirates, aimed at investing in Greek companies. As of March 23, 2021, the HDBI has listed 3 other open calls for investors and companies, namely the Green Greek Funds, under which €400M are distributed to local companies specializing in energy conservation, circular economy, and renewable energy production, the Coinvestment Fund, another equity or quasi-equity €100M fund facilitating the cooperation between the Bank and private investors, and the €700M Restructuring, made in Greece, 4IR, Debt Fund.
