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Good practice Imported

HAMAG-BICRO Acceleration Programme Grants (Croatia)

Croatia · Zagreb · See the Croatia profile · See the Zagreb profile

Evidence: Descriptive / self-reported Top 93% 43/100 · Ask Evidence Copilot about this practice

HAMAG-BICRO, Croatia's state SME and innovation agency, awarded nearly EUR 3 million in grants (up to EUR 25,000 each) to 51 startups chosen through the country's largest-ever innovation competition, held across Zagreb, Osijek and Zadar in December 2024.

~3 € million
Grant funding disbursed (disbursed July 2025)
51 companies
Companies funded
25,000 €
Maximum grant per company
~120 companies
Total Acceleration Programme participants (wider pool)
9 organisations
Partner accelerator organisations

Details

Promoter
HAMAG-BICRO - Croatian Agency for SMEs, Innovations and Investments
Period
2024-2025
Region (NUTS)
HR05
Keywords
startup acceleration, innovation grants, public financial instruments, SME funding, national recovery plan

Context

HAMAG-BICRO (Croatian Agency for SMEs, Innovations and Investments), formed in 2014, administers EU and national financial instruments including Croatia's National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NPOO) funds, and runs a national Acceleration Programme delivered through 9 partner accelerator organisations.

Results

In December 2024, HAMAG-BICRO staged what organisers describe as Croatia's largest-ever innovation-project competition across Zagreb, Osijek and Zadar, judged by an international jury. The top-ranked entrants among Acceleration Programme participants — 51 companies up to five years old, out of roughly 120 in the wider programme — received grant contracts worth up to €25,000 each, totalling nearly €3 million, disbursed in July 2025 under the 'Strengthening Acceleration Activities' measure. This covers a single grant cycle: no source reports survival rates, follow-on funding or job creation for the companies funded, and continuation beyond this EU Recovery and Resilience Facility-funded round is not established.

Implementation
Indicative cost
Medium (€50k–€500k)
Time to results
Short (< 1 year)
Staffing & skills
HAMAG-BICRO (Croatian Agency for SMEs, Innovations and Investments) as national implementing agency, 9 partner accelerator organisations delivering pre-acceleration and acceleration support, International jury judging the December 2024 competition

Conditions for success

  • A national network of 9 partner accelerators providing local delivery capacity across multiple cities
  • Judging by an international jury for the competitive grant round
  • EU Recovery and Resilience Facility (NPOO) co-financing providing the grant pool

Common failure modes

  • No source reports post-award outcomes — survival rates, follow-on funding or job creation — for the 51 funded companies
  • Financing depends on a time-bound EU Recovery and Resilience Facility allocation, so continuation beyond this round is not established

Where it fits

Governance type
national SME/innovation agency, EU Recovery and Resilience Facility co-financed
Scale
national (3 cities: Zagreb, Osijek, Zadar)
Income level
high-income (EU)

Commonly funded by

Recovery and Resilience Facility (national plans) National / regional programmes

Indicative funding routes for practices of this type — always check each programme's current calls and eligibility rules.

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Data sources

Where this practice's information was retrieved from, and when.

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