Briefly
Program description
The Ukrainian Startup Fund is launching the Startup EDGE grant program with the support of the EU4Innovation East project, which is funded by the EU, co-financed by the French government, and implemented by Expertise France.
The program aims to support Ukrainian technology companies in the early stages of development with limited access to private capital and is designed to strengthen the competitiveness of startups and accelerate their entry into international markets.
Main Information
Eligibility
The applicant must:
- be a legal entity/sole proprietor established after January 2020;
- operate in Ukraine and create jobs;
not manufacture dual-use products; - not have received more than $500,000 in aid as of the date of application for the entire period of operation at the official exchange rate of the National Bank of Ukraine;
- have no tax or salary arrears or other obligations to the budget, no salary arrears as of the first day of the month in which the application for participation in the competition is submitted, and no unfinished enforcement proceedings regarding the enforcement of their economic obligations;
- not have any open bankruptcy proceedings and/or not be declared bankrupt, and/or not be in the process of liquidation.
Financing
The total budget for the program is €1 million. Within this amount, two types of grant support are provided:
- €20,000 — for pre-seed startups that can use the funds to test business hypotheses, develop an MVP, and attract their first customers;
- €40,000 — for teams at the seed stage, which can use the support to scale their product, enter new markets, and attract customers. Detailed categories of eligible and ineligible expenses are not provided in the source.
Supported Activities
The program focuses on three strategic sectors:
- Deep Tech — specifically artificial intelligence, machine learning, robotics, biotechnology, and life sciences;
- Green Tech — renewable energy, clean technologies, resource-saving and climate solutions;
- EdTech — digital education platforms and technologies for transforming the learning process.
Roadmap
Each application goes through the following stages:
- Compliance (verification of compliance).
- Expert evaluation.
- Pitching and review by the Selection Committee.
- Approval by the Fund's Supervisory Board.
- Signing of the grant agreement.
How to Apply
Applications are submitted via the Ukrainian Startup Fund portal; applications are accepted for 30 days after each announcement.
FAQ
On average, 2.5 months.
There will be 4 Competitions within the Grant Program. An applicant may submit no more than one application for one project in one sector of activity within one competition. One applicant may receive only one grant under the Grant Program. If an application is rejected, the applicant may reapply, but no more than three times during the term of the grant program.
Changes to the application are only allowed if it has been sent for revision at the Compliance stage. Changes are not allowed at any other stages. If the information in your application has changed, you can submit a request to the Fund to reject the application and then submit a new one.
The grant is provided in a single tranche for projects in the pre-seed and seed stages (regardless of the number of months).
The status of the application will change to “Pitch Day” in the applicant's account. The Fund's team will inform projects approximately one week before the pitch.
You can leave sections that are not relevant to the Project blank.