The Minister for Business, Trade and Employment, Simon Coveney, and the Finance Minister, Michael McGrath, have welcomed today's announcement of a new commitment of up to €20 million to Resolve Ventures, marking the second round of funding under the Irish Innovation Seed Fund.
The first commitment under this programme was a grant to WakeUp Capital in June 2023, and it's expected that this fund will start investing before the end of the year.
Resolve Ventures, a new fund manager focused on early-stage investments in Ireland, is led by David Scanlon and Alan Costello, who have extensive experience in Ireland's technology startup scene and previously managed the Accelerate Green sustainability program.
The fund will target early-stage investments in innovative tech companies tackling major climate and sustainability challenges, such as technological solutions for renewable energy production and storage, sustainable agri/foodtech systems, and smart cities, construction, and mobility.
The team aims to close the first fund and begin actively investing in a promising pipeline of opportunities by the end of 2023 or early 2024.
Simon Coveney, Minister for Business, Trade and Employment, commented:
"I am pleased to announce the second significant funding commitment under the Irish Innovation Seed Fund Programme. This allocation to Resolve Ventures continues to reflect the government's recognition that without support for new businesses at an early stage, we face a shortfall of scalable indigenous companies later in the development cycle.
"This is why this allocation is such a positive initiative for the Irish market, with Enterprise Ireland investing alongside the EIF. It's the government's ambition to create an ecosystem pipeline where Irish entrepreneurs are building successful global businesses that reflect a focus on technology and innovation, providing high-quality jobs which in turn strengthen the Irish-owned export sector. This is a key outcome in my department's White Paper on Enterprise.
"I look forward to making further announcements about funding allocations."
Finance Minister Michael McGrath added:
"I welcome this second allocation of funds from the €90 million Irish Innovation Seed Fund Programme, launched to provide greater access to early-stage financing for highly innovative startups and SMEs.
"It's encouraging to see further progress in this collaboration between the European Investment Fund and Enterprise Ireland, with the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund participating as a co-investor, all three partners working together to support investment in innovative Irish and European companies.
"The government remains committed to further developing the Irish venture capital market and helping high-growth SMEs access funding to scale and reach their full potential."
David Scanlon, Managing Partner of Resolve Ventures, said:
"We are very pleased with the significant amount of funding secured to date. At Resolve Ventures, we believe in investing in our future and in doing our part to deliver the necessary impact momentum to meet the targets set by the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
"Through this fund, we hope to support innovative technological solutions crucial for ensuring the rapid decarbonisation of both the Irish and global economy overall, in line with legally binding targets. Nurturing our venture capital ecosystem is key; we're not just investing directly in companies, but also in carbon reduction and conserving our planet for future generations, broadly scaling the deployment of equitable and nature-positive solutions."
Context
The Irish Innovation Seed Fund Programme is a €90 million fund-of-funds, composed of a €30 million investment from the Department of Business, Trade and Employment, through Enterprise Ireland, matched by a €30 million investment from the European Investment Fund, and a co-investment of €30 million from the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund. As a fund-of-funds, the programme will invest in other specialist fund managers who will in turn target innovative companies.
For more information, you can access the full article (in English) on the website:
[https://www.gov.ie/en/press-release/d612c-ministers-coveney-and-mcgrath-welcome-second-allocation-of-funding-under-irish-innovation-seed-fund/](https://www.gov.ie/en/press-release/d612c-ministers-coveney-and-mcgrath-welcome-second-allocation-of-funding-under-irish-innovation-seed-fund/)
