Many of the obstacles faced by start-ups and scale-ups in the EU are directly linked to the fragmentation of the EU Single Market or to its less developed components, such as the Capital Markets Union.

Successful business growth often requires entering cross-border markets and attracting investors from different countries in order to secure continuous funding.

In her mission letter, Commissioner Ekaterina Zaharieva was tasked with creating a European strategy for start-ups and scale-ups aimed at improving the framework conditions for these companies.

EU-level action is needed to develop a range of policy, financial and regulatory measures to eliminate these fragmentations and improve the framework conditions for start-ups and scale-ups across the Single Market.

Furthermore, more expertise and incentives are required to encourage the creation of more technology-based spin-off companies from EU universities and research institutions.

Europe’s capacity for innovation is crucial to its international competitiveness, ensuring its continued economic prosperity, technological sovereignty, security, resilience and global influence.

Start-ups and scale-ups are a key driver of innovation, as they bring new, sometimes disruptive, products and solutions to the market that are valuable in addressing societal challenges and contributing to the green and digital transitions.

To enable this, the strategy should include comprehensive measures to tackle the obstacles encountered by EU start-ups and scale-ups when seeking to grow within the Single Market.

The main objective of the strategy will therefore be to improve the overall framework conditions for these companies through a broad set of policy, financial and legislative measures.

The strategy will reflect an “integrated governance” approach and close cooperation with Member States, identifying levers across all policy areas that can contribute to the success of these companies. It will build on existing EU and national initiatives.

The strategy is expected to be closely aligned with the Commission’s objective of reducing administrative burdens and simplifying legislation.

The goal of reducing red tape and increasing the predictability of regulatory processes for start-ups and scale-ups will be an integral part of the initiatives announced in the strategy.

The European Strategy for Start-ups and Scale-ups will be data-driven, taking into account, in particular, the recommendations of the 2024 Draghi and Letta reports.

The strategy will also contribute to addressing the innovation gap, which has been identified as the first pillar of the Competitiveness Compass.

It will also be closely aligned with:

i) the Single Market Strategy,
ii) the European Innovation Act,
iii) the Skills Union, and
iv) the Communication on a Union of Savings and Investment.

Our team remains at your disposal for further information.