Polish National Centre for Research and Development (Narodowe Centrum Badań i Rozwoju, NCBR) launches the third edition of their BRIdge Alfa program. Within this program, private investors can obtain funding that will later be invested in small enterprises, especially in research and development projects. The budget of this edition of BRIdge Alfa reached an astounding sum of 1 billion PLN.
“We decided to revise the project selection criteria. This way, we can provide an access to grants to a broader range of potential beneficiaries, “said Jadwiga Emilewicz, the Undersecretary of State at the Poland’s Ministry of Economic Development. “We propose two paths to obtaining BRIdge Alfa funds. One is designed for funds of lesser value, up to 25 million PLN, and the other for investors with a higher start-up capital – up to 50 million PLN.”
The program aims to support innovative R&D projects at early stages of their development, especially during the preseed phase. It’s not a surprise that private investors are often reluctant to finance projects at this stage. The funding offered by NCBR (so-called proof of concept funding) decreases risks, allowing researchers to work on their projects with a constant financial support for a period of up to 5 years. Neither NCBR nor participating investors claim rights to the companies or patents obtained by the project team.
The pilot edition of BRIdge Alfa, held in 2015, resulted in the creation of 10 different funds that supported 47 technological companies, such as Photon (an educational robot) or Nanosanquis (production of artificial blood). In 2016, after a rigorous selection, NCBR chose 19 out of 112 applicants to receive 484 million PLN in total. These 19 investors are slowly beginning to select companies they want to support financially.
Exactly like in the previous editions, the applicants of the third edition of BRIdge Alfa will receive 80% of their funding from NCBR. The remaining 20% must be obtained from private investors and business angels.
Applications will be open from 5th to 26th September 2017.
NCBR was impact’17 Partner.
NCBR website: http://www.ncbr.gov.pl/
