attracted by the venture capital company 33East in partnership with the European Investment Fund (EIF).

Kyriakos Kakouris, Vice President of the European Investment Bank (EIB), said at the fund’s official launch on Thursday that the fund’s goal is to stimulate investment in the regional market and increase its global competitiveness.

Andreas Zahariades, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, emphasized the importance of the fund, recognizing the startup sector as a particularly challenging business area. He noted that due to the “high-risk nature of their activities,” startups in Cyprus continue to face difficulties in obtaining financing. Emphasizing the need for “support where the market fails,” he emphasized the importance of financing conditions that offer financial support tailored to each startup’s stage of development.

“We want to invest in obsessive people,” said 33East co—founder Yannis Eftihiou, emphasizing the company’s approach to investing based on the ideas of the founders rather than market trends. He added that investments will be received by up to two companies per quarter.

The fund will be the first of its kind in Cyprus, supported by public resources, including public financing of 19 million euros from the Cyprus Equity Fund (CEF) and 7 million euros from private investors, including the Bank of Cyprus, which will contribute 2 million euros.

Cyprus was declared the fastest-growing startup hub in the EU in 2024, and Limassol, in particular, has become a key hub for startups in Southern Europe, boosted by the influx of international technology companies from Russia, Israel, and Ukraine.

Since 2020, the startup sector in Cyprus has grown fivefold and now ranks 39th in the world in the field of fintech and 25th in the field of gaming. Today, the country’s innovation ecosystem includes more than 400 startups and innovative enterprises.

https://russiancyprus.news/news/society/cypriot-startups-to-receive-e26-million-boost-from-33east-and-eif/