Smart SMEs tap into Enterprise Ireland state aids [Video]

State agency Enterprise Ireland is the most active venture capital fund by deal count in Europe, but its key role is to provide several types of grants with the aim of maintaining and increasing employment in indigenous firms.

The numbers aren’t in yet for 2023 but in 2022 Enterprise Ireland’s financial support to industry totalled €107m. These span grants for employment, marketing and knowledge transfer, consultancy, management development and training, regional development, and other purposes.

On the VC side, share investments totalled €23m in 2022, down from €28m the previous year. EI also invests in SMEs through providing funds for private VC funds.

The agency’s annual report for 2022 discloses sale proceeds of €75m from its own investments and companies where VC partners are invested. These sales generated a profit of €28m. In 2021, the sale proceeds were €164m and the profit was €61m.

In 2023, according to the agency’s estimates, client firms created 15,530 new …