Held at the Charlemagne building in Brussels, the “InvestEU: Financing Europe’s Future” forum brought together a high-level community of political leaders, industry experts and stakeholders to discuss the future of European finance and sustainability. Needs Map Co-founder Güler Altınsoy attended the event. The forum featured discussions about InvestEU’s green and digital transformation, its role in strengthening Europe’s resilience and social impact.

What is InvestEu?

The InvestEU programme provides the European Union with crucial long-term funding by leveraging private and public funds in support of Europe’s sustainable recovery. It helps to mobilize private investments for the EU’s top policy priorities, such as the green, and digital transition, innovation and social investments and skills.

It also supports the REPowerEU plan – the Commission’s response to the global energy market disruption caused by Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine.

The InvestEU programme brings together the multitude of earlier EU financial instruments, making access to finance and investments in European companies and projects simpler, more efficient and more flexible.

The InvestEU programme consists of three components: the InvestEU Fund, the InvestEU Advisory Hub and the InvestEU Portal.

The InvestEU Fund is implemented through financial partners that will invest in projects, benefitting from the protection of EU budget guarantee. The €26.2 billion EU budget guarantee backs the investments of financial partners (the “implementing partners”), increasing their risk-bearing capacity and thus allowing to mobilise at least €372 billion in additional investment.

Who took part in the program of the forum “InvestEU: Financing the Future of Europe”?

The opening session commenced with a warm welcome from moderator Naomi Lloyd, followed by an opening speech from Paolo Gentiloni, European Commissioner for the Economy. A moderated exchange of views included perspectives from Teresa Czerwińska, Vice-President of the European Investment Bank, Vincent Van Peteghem, Minister of Finance for Belgium, and Jyrki Katainen, Former Prime Minister of Finland and VP of the European Commission.

The spotlight then turned to InvestEU beneficiaries, with notable figures such as Jarosław Broda (CEO, Baltic Power), Vladimiras Vinokurovas (CEO, Lithuanian Inland Waterways Authority), Riemer Smink (Managing and Founding Partner, Forward.One), and Barbara Belvisi (Founder & CEO, Interstellar Lab) sharing their insights on driving the green and digital transition. Another session focused on strengthening Europe’s resilience and social impact, featuring Silke Horáková (Co-Founder & Partner, Tilia Impact Ventures II), Garrett O’Donohoe (CEO, Social Finance Foundation), and Mart Ustav (Chief Scientific Officer, Icosagen).

The second half of the event explored InvestEU through the lens of implementing partners, featuring Marjut Falkstedt (CEO, European Investment Fund), Carlo Monticelli (Governor, Council of Europe Development Bank), Mark Bowman (Vice President for Policy and Partnerships, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development), Jellie Banga (Board Member, InvestNL), and Dario Scannapieco (CEO, Cassa Depositi e Prestiti Group and President of the European Long Term Investors Association).

The stakeholders’ view was presented in a session with José Manuel Fernandes (Member of the European Parliament), Fabio Pammolli (Chair of the InvestEU Investment Committee), Véronique Willems (Secretary General, SME United), and Eric de Montgolfier (Invest Europe).

The event concluded with a closing session featuring a speech by Nadia Calviño, President of the European Investment Bank, and concluding remarks by Elena Flores, Deputy Director-General for Economic and Financial Affairs at the European Commission. The forum provided a comprehensive overview of InvestEU’s initiatives and its potential impact on Europe’s economic and social landscape.