Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 28 April 2026
135. Deputy Joe Neville asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment following on from his announcement of a €250 million allocation to a seed and venture capital programme helping Irish enterprise, the way in which this money will be allocated to SMEs; his views on the growth projections possible within companies who obtain this funding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30512/26]
View answerThe Seed and Venture Capital Scheme was established in 1994 and since then has invested €700 million to support and sustain national and regional innovation which, in turn, has leveraged €3.3 billion in private investment. The Scheme's key purpose is to increase the supply of risk capital to Irish start-ups to support their growth, leverage private sector investment, and establish a robust, commercially viable, and sustainable Venture Capital sector in Ireland.
The SVC Scheme is funded through my Department and is administered by Enterprise Ireland. It operates by making commitments, on a competitive basis, to selected professionally managed venture capital funds. These funds, in turn, make equity investments in high-potential, innovative companies in line with their agreed investment strategies and the overall objectives of the Scheme.
The Scheme operates in five-year cycles. The current cycle covers the period 2025 to 2029 and provides a total allocation of €250 million, reflecting an increase of €75 million on the previous programme. This increased allocation is intended to support the establishment of appropriately sized funds and to enhance the availability of follow-on capital for growing companies.
The first open call under the current cycle closed in February 2025 and attracted a record number of applications. Enterprise Ireland made initial commitments of €120 million to a number of funds in 2025 and these funds are anticipated to launch during 2026.
An independent evaluation of the Scheme covering 2013 to 2022 found significant positive impacts on supported companies, including employment growth, increased R&D expenditure and improved access to follow-on funding. The review estimated that SVC-backed firms generated €2.05 billion in Gross Value Added and supported approximately 4,300 additional jobs over the period.
These outcomes underline the significant growth potential of SMEs supported through the programme and inform expectations that the current funding allocation will continue to drive scale, innovation and sustainable job creation within the Irish enterprise base.
