Support Organisation directory in Europe
Browse support organisation organisations across Europe. Each entry links to its country, city, and sector pages.
Showing 1–20 of 67 Support Organisation
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AINOT Business Angels Network
A network of private investors associated with NOT (Federation of Engineering Associations), supporting early-stage high-growth companies. AINOT runs a structured support program from idea scouting and pre-incubation to equity investment (up to €200k) and follow-ons. How to apply: submit your idea via the online application form on the AINOT website (open intake). Notable focus: deep innovation and engineering-heavy startups, leveraging NOT’s technical expertise to vet and mentor projects.
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Aktantis
Aktantis is a world-class European deeptech competitiveness cluster founded in 2005 and based in Sophia Antipolis, France, federating an innovation ecosystem focused on digital transition across microelectronics, IoT, cybersecurity, AI, and photonics. With over 300 member organizations, Aktantis supports companies through project financing, growth acceleration, international expansion, and cybersecurity protection, with member startups collectively raising over 500 million euros in funding and investing 1.5 billion euros in R&D. The cluster participates as a partner in SIDO Lyon as part of its European deeptech ecosystem development mission.
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Amber Business Angels Network
A network grown by the Polish Entrepreneurship Foundation in Szczecin, uniting ~50 investors from across Poland. Amber invests in projects that at least have a prototype or beta, focusing on those with high potential and market access. Notable focus: early post-prototype startups requiring angel funding to commercialize (diverse sectors, strong emphasis on the West Pomerania region).
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APER Angels
A deep-tech and hardware focused co-investment network founded in 2014 under the APER Ventures fund. APER Angels connects private angel investors with VC funds to pool capital for high-tech startups. They typically invest PLN 250k–5M in early-stage companies, and have backed over 24 startups with ~PLN 50M total. Notable focus: hardware, IoT, and deep-tech startups (often syndicating with APER Ventures).
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BESCO – Bulgarian Entrepreneurial Association
BESCO (Bulgarian Entrepreneurial Association) is a non-governmental organization founded in September 2017 by 30 stakeholders in Bulgaria's startup ecosystem. It acts as a bridge between startups, investors, government bodies, and international institutions, and is Bulgaria's member in the European Startup Network. BESCO advocates for entrepreneur-friendly regulation, facilitates access to Sofia Tech Park resources, and partners with the European Investment Bank and EIF. It operates under the motto 'For Entrepreneurs By Entrepreneurs.'
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Business Angels of Slovenia
Business Angels of Slovenia (Poslovni angeli Slovenije) was founded in 2007 and is the first and largest angel investor club in Slovenia. The organisation has facilitated over $8 million in investments across more than 40 ventures, focusing on early-stage and seed-stage startups. It is a member of EBAN (European Business Angels Network) and the Global Entrepreneur Network, providing portfolio companies with access to international investor networks. It serves as a bridge between founders seeking seed capital and experienced investors looking for early-stage deal flow.
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Business Finland
Business Finland is the Finnish government agency for innovation funding and trade, investment, and travel promotion, formed in 2018 from the merger of Finpro and Tekes. It is one of the most significant public funding sources for startups in Europe, distributing hundreds of millions of euros annually in grants, loans, and R&D funding to Finnish companies at all stages. For startups, Business Finland offers the Tempo funding program (up to EUR 50,000 for early validation), NIY (up to EUR 1.25M for scaling), and various R&D project grants for deep tech and industrial innovation. The agency also operates a global network of offices helping Finnish startups enter international markets, and runs targeted programs for sectors including cleantech, health, gaming, and AI. Business Finland plays a foundational role in Finland's innovation system and is a key reason Helsinki has become one of Europe's leading startup cities.
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COBIN Angels
COBIN Angels is Poland's largest business-angel network, founded in 2015 and based at the Cambridge Innovation Center in Warsaw, with a community of 160+ active private investors. It syndicates pre-seed and seed rounds (typical tickets of PLN 100,000–450,000 per angel), runs founder education and pitch sessions, and connects startups with experienced operators. The network is led by founder and managing partner Robert Ługowski, CEO Dominik Krawczyk and managing partner Paweł Michalski, with an investment board including Kasia Pieniądz and communications led by Tomasz Laskowicz. COBIN organises the annual Business Angel of the Year (BAY) awards — now in its eighth edition — and co-publishes Poland's business-angel market report with the SGH Warsaw School of Economics, PKO Bank Polski and PFR Ventures. It is a member of the European Business Angels Network (EBAN) and participates in cross-border EU syndication programmes. Notable syndicate investments include Growbots, Salesbook, SkySnap, Prosoma and the pet-care startup Petsy (a €1.1M angel round in 2024).
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Coders Lab
Coders Lab is a Warsaw-founded IT school and coding bootcamp established in 2013 by brothers Marcin and Jacek Tchórzewski, among the first programming bootcamps in Poland. It offers career-change programmes in Python, JavaScript, and data analytics and has expanded its campus model to several European countries. The company received angel investment from Grupa Pracuj and employed roughly 190 people by its tenth anniversary in 2023.
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DCU Ryan Academy for Entrepreneurship
The DCU Ryan Academy for Entrepreneurship is a not-for-profit startup support organization in Dublin, affiliated with Dublin City University and founded with philanthropic support from the Ryan family (of Ryanair fame). Since its establishment in 2010, the Ryan Academy has become a hub for accelerator programs, entrepreneurship training, and ecosystem initiatives in Ireland. It operates from DCU’s Innovation Campus and focuses on early-stage startups as well as fostering entrepreneurial skills among students and the general public. Two flagship programs define the Academy: Propeller Accelerator, which was one of Ireland’s first seed accelerators (launched 2011, focused on tech startups), and the Female High Fliers program, an accelerator exclusively for women-led startups. Through these, the Academy has accelerated dozens of startups – alumni include fintech startup CurrencyFair and data startup Logentries, both of which achieved successful exits. Startups accepted into Ryan Academy programs receive pre-seed funding (up to €30k), office space, mentorship from seasoned entrepreneurs, and investor introductions. The Academy also provides entrepreneurship training courses, both at DCU (to students via modules) and to the wider community via short courses. Uniquely, the Ryan Academy blends academic and practical aspects: participants can tap into DCU research expertise while getting hands-on workshops by industry practitioners. The Academy actively engages in EU projects and networks, e.g. it led the INSPIRE program to support immigrant entrepreneurs and partnered on the Startup Europe initiative. Impact-wise, the DCU Ryan Academy has supported over 500 entrepreneurs and helped secure follow-on funding for many. It is credited with improving diversity in Ireland’s startup scene (through Female High Fliers) and championing social entrepreneurship as well. Alumni like Boxever (AI in travel, acquired by Sitecore) got early support at Ryan Academy. With its mission to “develop Ireland’s next generation of entrepreneurs,” the Academy plays a pivotal role in the ecosystem. It effectively acts as a “support organization” bridging academia, industry, and startup community – offering not just programs but also research, events, and policy input to grow Ireland’s innovation capacity.
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EIFO
EIFO, the Export and Investment Fund of Denmark, is the state backed institution that provides loans, guarantees, and equity to support Danish companies from early stage startups to export focused scale ups. Formed by merging Denmark's growth fund and export credit agencies, EIFO plays a central role in de risking innovation and attracting private capital. The organization co invests with venture funds, supports green transition projects, and helps companies expand internationally. EIFO is a cornerstone of Denmark's public support infrastructure for entrepreneurship.
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ENISA
ENISA (Empresa Nacional de Innovacion) is a Spanish state-owned company that provides participative loans to SMEs and startups, a form of flexible, quasi-equity financing that does not require founders to give up ownership or provide personal guarantees. It is one of the main public financing instruments for early-stage companies in Spain.
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Enterprise Ireland
Enterprise Ireland is the Irish state agency established by the Industrial Development (Enterprise Ireland) Act 1998 to support Irish-owned manufacturing and internationally traded services companies. It operates the High Potential Start-Up (HPSU) programme, which provides equity funding of up to €800,000 to startups with the potential to create 10 jobs and €1 million in exports within three years, and invested €27.6 million in 157 startups in 2024. The agency has a global network of offices to help Irish companies win export sales in international markets.
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Estonian Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (ESTVCA)
The Estonian Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (EstVCA) is the industry body representing private equity and venture capital investors active in Estonia. It promotes the asset class, gathers market data, advocates on policy and regulation, and connects fund managers, limited partners and the wider startup ecosystem to strengthen access to growth capital in Estonia.
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EU4Innovation East
A regional initiative funded by the European Union with co-funding from the French Government, working to strengthen the competitiveness of startup ecosystems across the five Eastern Partnership countries — Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine. It supports founders through acceleration, access to grants and tenders, STEM education, and cross-border networking, and partners with regional flagship events including DigiTec in Yerevan.
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EXIST Programme
EXIST is the German federal government's flagship programme for promoting university-based entrepreneurship, operated by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action. Running since 1998, EXIST provides two main grant instruments: the EXIST Business Start-up Grant (up to EUR 3,000/month per team member for one year) for student and researcher teams developing a business plan, and the EXIST Research Transfer grant (up to EUR 250,000 plus materials) for deep-tech spin-offs from universities and research institutions. Over 4,000 startups have received EXIST funding, and the programme has become a cornerstone of Germany's academic entrepreneurship infrastructure. EXIST also supports universities in building entrepreneurial cultures through its EXIST Potentials programme, which funds entire university startup ecosystems.
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FinTech Scotland
FinTech Scotland is a strategic cluster management organisation established in 2018, dedicated to driving financial inclusion through fintech innovation and collaboration across Scotland. Based in Edinburgh, it supports an ecosystem of over 250 fintech firms spanning WealthTech, InsureTech, RegTech, Payments, and Open Banking. It leads the Financial Regulation Innovation Lab (FRIL) as part of the UK Government's Innovation Accelerator programme and is an active partner in Glasgow Tech Week.
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Foundation for Armenian Science and Technology (FAST)
FAST is a non-profit organization founded in 2017 by Ruben Vardanyan, Noubar Afeyan, and partners, with the mission to build a research and innovation ecosystem in Armenia across AI and data science, advanced materials, biotechnology, and robotics. It has funded over 260 researchers, supported more than 800 entrepreneurs, and backed 35+ startups through grants, acceleration, and a university-linked education-research-commercialisation model.
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Founders4Schools
Founders4Schools was founded in 2013 by Sherry Coutu CBE as a charity connecting UK students with founders and employers to improve employability and bridge the skills gap. In 2017 it launched Workfinder, an app that lets young people search for and apply to work-experience placements at fast-growing companies. The organisation operates at the intersection of the startup ecosystem and education, complementing Coutu's work at the ScaleUp Institute.
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French Tech 2030 / Next40 / FT120
French Tech Next40/120 is a French government program run by the Mission French Tech that identifies and supports the 120 highest-performing French scale-ups each year. The Next40 cohort (the top 40) is selected based on revenue growth above €100 million or the largest fundraising volumes, while the broader FT120 requires at least €20 million in revenue with 15% annual growth. Selected companies receive prioritized access to public services, international promotion, and regulatory support to help them compete globally.
