EBRD backs Romania's VC firm GapMinder to invest in SEE

This partnership aims to bolster the Romanian technology sector by providing critical capital to early-stage tech companies, the EBRD said in a press release.

"GapMinder Fund II will make equity and quasi-equity investments in early-stage technology-driven companies in the EBRD regions, predominantly in Romania, but also in Bulgaria, Croatia, Moldova, Serbia and Slovenia," the lender said.

The lack of ready availability of long-term financing remains a barrier to start-ups in the regions where the EBRD invests, the bank noted, adding that the partnership with GapMinder Fund II addresses this challenge by providing start-up companies with necessary capital, enabling them to thrive and introduce new technologies and business models, the lender said.

GapMinder Ventures targets seed and Series A stage business-to-business (B2B) IT software and digital product start-ups in the areas of fintech, cybersecurity, enterprise automation, and data and analytics. It invests up to 2 million euro in seed funding and up to 6 million euro in follow-up fundraising rounds, according to its website.

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