Enterprise Ireland invested €28m in Irish start-ups last year

Anual showcase brought together 150 entrepreneurs, investors, and members of the start-up ecosystem

Trade

Credit: Riccardo Annandale / CCO

8 April 2022

Enterprise Ireland invested more than €28 million in Irish start-ups and supported over 125 start-up companies last year.

The figure was released to mark the annual Enterprise Ireland Start-Up Showcase at the Avaica Stadium in Dublin, where more than 150 entrepreneurs and representatives from early-stage businesses attended along with investors, mentors, and other members of the broader Irish start-up ecosystem.

The event brought together the ‘Class of 2021’, featured the best of export-focussed start-ups in Ireland and are a key pillar of Enterprise Ireland’s strategy to support companies as they build, scale, innovate and expand their reach to international markets.

Investment was provided to Irish companies and entrepreneurs last year in the form of equity through Competitive Start Fund (CSF) and High Potential Start-Up (HPSU) funding programmes by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, through Enterprise Ireland.

Of the 82 HPSUs supported last year, 24 were women-led and 11 emerged from academic research. More than €2 million was approved for 43 companies under the Competitive Start Fund, of which 16 are women-led.

“Supporting companies on their growth journey means supporting local and national economies, as well as job creation for future generations,” said Leo Clancy, CEO, Enterprise Ireland. “At Enterprise Ireland, our mission is to help accelerate the development of world-class Irish companies to achieve leading positions in global markets, and this means supporting Irish founders and their hard-working teams from the beginning.

“It is important that we recognise the perseverance and achievements of Enterprise Ireland’s ‘Class of 2021’. We are committed to supporting this drive and ambition, not just with funding, but also with strategic guidance and other development supports.”

“Enterprise Ireland has been working closely with start-ups throughout the year to grow their businesses at every stage,” said Jennifer Melia, divisional manager, technology & services division, Enterprise Ireland. “We work with entrepreneurs on their growth journey as they build world-class teams. This year we have seen extraordinary resilience and business potential from Irish-founded start-up teams. 2021 was a strong year for Ireland’s start-up economy. With a strong start-up economy, we are supporting and securing Ireland’s future.”

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