ZAGREB, 6 July, 2021 - Investment in private equity in Croatia stands at 0.3% of GDP, whereby it lags behind the most successful countries in that segment, the Croatian Bank for Reconstruction and Development (HBOR) CEO said on Tuesday, adding that the HBOR would participate in launching a €40 billion technology transfer fund.
Tamara Perko was speaking at the Bestinvest.hr conference organised by the Croatian Private Equity and Venture Capital Association, at which awards for the best private equity and venture capital investment were presented.
Perko said the HBOR contributed significantly to the development of private equity and venture capital in the past two years.
She said that together with the European Investment Fund (EIF) and private investors, the HBOR invested in €46 million worth FIL Rouge Capital, the first venture capital fund investing only in Croatia.
Last year the HBOR, together with the EIF, established three more equity funds in Croatia, the Prosperus Growth Fund, the Adriatic Structured Equity Fund, and the Croatian Mezzanine Debt Fund, investing over €80 million.
Perko said that together with the EIF and the Slovenian development bank, the HBOR planned to invest in a fifth fund, the Transfer Technology Fund. In terms of patents, Croatia is within the EU average, but is near the bottom when it comes to their applicability in the economy, she added.
The purpose of the Transfer Technology Fund is to commercialise science and finance societies that will be established in science and research institutions and work together with the economic sector by providing the necessary products, services and processes, Perko said.
She said that Estonia invested 1.3% in private equity and was among the countries investing the most in that segment, adding that Croatia, with only 0.3%, "must run four times faster to catch up with the best."
Minister underlines importance of industries based on new technologies
Economy and Sustainable Development Minister Tomislav Ćorić underlined the importance of technology transfer and new technologies for the Croatian economy whose development, he said, must be based on those industries.
He said the venture and private equity scene in Croatia developed in a good direction over the past ten, 15 years. The fact that classic financing sources often are not enough additionally underlines the importance of the fund industry, he added.
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