Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 24 February 2026
457. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment for an update on progress of recommendation no. 40 of the Action Plan for Competitiveness & Productivity on incentivising pension fund and institutional investor participation in the financing of scaling Irish enterprise. [15123/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraSupporting Irish SMEs to scale and grow remains a key priority for the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment and is a core theme of the Government’s Action Plan for Competitiveness and Productivity. Scaling SMEs continue to face a structural disadvantage arising from persistent gaps in access to venture capital, scale-up financing and public market liquidity.
In 2025, the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment published Market Demand for and Supply of Scaling Finance in Ireland, which identified a €1.1 billion funding gap for deals from €3 million and for Series A and later-stage rounds over the next three to five years. This gap contributes to founders selling early or seeking overseas investment, with the risk of businesses relocating and the associated loss of jobs and expertise to the State. This scaling finance gap cannot be met solely through public financing. Mobilising private institutional and retail investment is therefore essential to ensuring that sufficient long-term, patient capital is available to support the growth and expansion of Irish start-ups and scale-ups.
In response, my Department has developed a Finance for Scaling Implementation Strategy. The Strategy aligns with commitments in the Programme for Government and advances specific actions in the Action Plan on Competitiveness and Productivity aimed at supporting institutional investor participation in the financing of scaling Irish enterprise. Its objective is to build an ecosystem in which firms have access to a reliable and diverse range of funding options to scale.
Key elements of that Strategy are an examination of the barriers to investment by pension funds and institutional investors, and framing concrete policy actions to address those barriers. My colleague Minister Burke plans to bring that Strategy to Government in the next few weeks and to publish it afterwards.
In the meantime, work is already underway in my Department consulting with stakeholders and reviewing international initiatives that have successfully unlocked institutional investment abroad.
