We weren’t expecting it anymore! Discreet throughout the confinement, the Federation of Startups just publicly shared its demands and made them known to the Minister of Economy, Franz Fayot. This open letter to the Minister concerning the aid given to startups during the Covid-19 crisis was submitted to the vote of its 191 members. The vote came back with 97% of favorable votes according to the FLSU management.
Looking at the aid proposed for startups, the members feel that they have had little or no interest in young innovative companies. The Federation of Startups therefore suggests the following proposals:
– The allocation of the five times 150,000 euros envelope to 5 additional startups within the framework of the competition “Startups VS Covid” with members of the jury who are not only attached to public/semi-public organizations or incubators audiences;
– Acceleration and simplification of the processing of applications using “Young Innovative Company” and the clear communication of the selection criteria (which currently are opaque and therefore allow for the random allocation of this aid according to subjective elements);
– A review of the government’s bank guarantee system for business loans and innovative ways to enable banks to accept applications for financing by business leaders;
– The Ministry’s support for the establishment of a network of venture capital funds made up of local teams to ensure the retention and attraction of the best projects in the region;
– The introduction of a tax-shelter to encourage private investors to participate in Luxembourgish startups and SMEs;
– The establishment of a real right to a systematic second chance in the event of non-fraudulent bankruptcy;
– A meeting between the relevant Ministry and the Startup Federation in order to to be able to present the realities of the daily life of Luxembourgish startups.
Read FLSU’s letter to the Minister of the Economy
Let’s now wait to see the Minister’s reaction to these grievances and whether or not some of these measures will be addressed.
Photo: Mike Meyers on Unsplash
