Our CEO, Vaclav Gregor, recently joined a panel discussion at the CEE Sustainable Finance Summit organized by the International Sustainable Finance Centre (ISFC). The panel, “Investors to Rescue – Supporting CEE Startups,” brought experts together to explore how investors can uplift entrepreneurs in the CEE region.
This summit, the largest specialized hybrid event focusing on sustainability in finance and business across Central and Eastern Europe, spanned five days, delving into various areas of sustainability. The event focused on important areas including finance, energy, business, banking, and investing & innovation, offering valuable insights and fostering essential collaboration opportunities.
The Panelists of “Investors to Rescue – Supporting CEE Startups”
During the panel discussion, Vaclav Gregor, alongside experts such as Andrew Gray (Tilia Impact Ventures), Terezia Jacova (LUMUS Investment Collective), Jan Stanek (Purple Ventures), and Marian Gazdik (G-Force), emphasized the pressing need for increased support to startups in the CEE region. Despite witnessing an annual influx of capital, this region still falls behind other markets in crucial metrics, such as the emergence of unicorns, successful exits, total funding, and external investments. Sectors like health tech and biotech, in particular, seem to grapple with challenges stemming from inadequate scientific infrastructure and research funding.
The discussion also shed light on hurdles faced upstream, encompassing universities and funding, and downstream, involving enthusiasm and adoption, in the innovation cycle. Critical issues included the underfunding of university research and the imperative to generate excitement for innovative outputs.
In conclusion, our active participation in the CEE Sustainable Finance Summit reaffirms our commitment to supporting and uplifting the startup ecosystem in the CEE region.