At this year’s Crossroads by Startup Bulgaria 2025 conference in Sofia, Bulgaria, the message was clear: the country is positioning itself as a strategic hub for early-stage innovation in Central and Eastern Europe. With low operational costs, access to EU funding, and an increasingly skilled talent pool, Bulgaria offers fertile ground for startups, investors, and
Europe is blessed with world-class research, talented innovators, and ambitious entrepreneurs. Yet, too often, groundbreaking ideas struggle to reach the market. Fragmented policies, complex regulations, and inconsistent support mechanisms slow the journey from lab to launch — and in too many cases, push innovators toward grey capital markets that operate outside transparent and regulated frameworks.
Europe’s Innovation Moment: Why the European Innovation Act Must Deliver Read More »
The European Crowdfunding Service Providers Regulation (EU) 2020/1503 (ECSPR) has, since its adoption, marked a significant milestone in building a first genuine single market for early-stage finance. By establishing a functioning harmonised regime for crowdfunding, it has streamlined rules and provided a more predictable framework for both investors and entrepreneurs. It is not perfect, of course, yet as
ECSPR Article 45 Review: Practical Solutions, Low Policy Cost, and a Stagnating Market Read More »
EUROCROWD is continuing our commitment to supporting European entrepreneurs, SMEs, and innovation-driven startups. As an official member of the EUIPO’s Ideas Powered for Business Network, we invite you to join the upcoming online training organised by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO): Train the Adviser – Unlocking Business Success with IP Tools and Services
Unlocking Business Success with IP Tools and Services – 23 October 2025 – online Read More »
Emerging EU innovation ecosystems—countries targeted under the EU’s ‘Widening Participation and Spreading Excellence’ policy, often referred to as ‘widening countries’—continue to face a persistent innovation gap compared to more mature innovation ecosystems in Western Europe. This divide is fueled by limited access to early-stage capital, a shortage of experienced investors, underdeveloped business angel networks, and
Boosting Early-Stage Investment in Europe’s Undercapitalised Regions Read More »
While the full ESMA 2024 ECSPR figures (due Q4 2025) will provide the definitive pulse of Europe’s crowdfunding market, the Mazars/France FinTech barometer for S1 2025 (French only) offers an early, if cautionary, preview. Though not ECSPR-exclusive, its trends highlight structural shifts that test the regulation’s core ambitions: broadening access to early-stage capital while ensuring
French and Italian Crowdfunding Trends: A Comparative Look Read More »
Earlier this year, EUROCROWD published its first ECSPR compliance study, assessing the websites of licensed crowdfunding platforms against 17 key performance indicators (KPIs). The results highlighted both progress and persistent gaps across the European market, underlining the need for a more consistent approach to transparency, investor protection, and regulatory alignment. Over summer we also began working directly
From Compliance Check to Best Practice: How One Platform Benefited Read More »
Eurocrowd is proud to announce its participation as a key member of the LEVERAGE Accelerator, a pioneering initiative designed to accelerate large-scale investments in energy efficiency, building renovation, and decarbonisation across Europe. With a consortium of 11 partners spanning 10 countries and a combined experience of over 140 years, the LEVERAGE Accelerator has already made
This autumn, EUROCROWD is excited to once again join forces with StartUp Bulgaria for their Crossroads 2025, the largest gathering for entrepreneurship and investment in Southeast Europe. The event takes place on 17–18 October 2025, in Sofia, Bulgaria, bringing together innovators, investors, policymakers, and thought leaders from across Europe and beyond. Meet us in Sofia.
Cross-border investment plays a critical role in Europe’s innovation ecosystem. By enabling the movement of capital, knowledge, and expertise across national boundaries, it supports the development and scaling of startups and SMEs—key engines of economic resilience and technological progress. Among early-stage investors, business angels are a vital part of this landscape. They provide not only
Pan-European Investment as a Driver of Innovation Read More »
