EU programmes · European Investment Fund (EIF) co-investing with national promotional institutions (BGK – Poland, BID – Romania, ILTE – Lithuania, HBOR – Croatia, SID Banka – Slovenia)
The Three Seas Initiative Infrastructure Fund of Funds is a new EIF-managed fund-of-funds established under a Memorandum of Understanding signed at the Three Seas Initiative Summit in Dubrovnik in April 2026. It channels public and private capital into sub-funds investing in energy, transport, digital, and social infrastructure across Central and Eastern Europe. The participating national promotional institutions are expected to contribute around EUR 250m collectively, with EIF matching those commitments to help unlock at least EUR 2bn of total investment. The fund is planned to begin operations in the second half of 2026 and will invest indirectly through a portfolio of regional infrastructure funds.
For defence-tech and dual-use companies active in resilience-critical infrastructure (energy grids, digital connectivity, transport corridors), this instrument offers access to long-term equity capital via intermediary infrastructure funds across 12 CEE EU member states. The fund explicitly targets cross-border projects that strengthen European resilience, making it relevant to companies whose technologies underpin secure energy, communications, or mobility infrastructure. Its fund-of-funds structure means the primary entry point is through qualifying regional infrastructure fund managers rather than direct project applications.
European Commission (DG DEFIS), with EUSPA and the EIF
Space is treated as dual-use across EU funding; CASSINI gives space-defence start-ups an equity pipeline and visibility instruments that stack with EDF and EUDIS applications.
European Investment Fund with the European Commission, under InvestEU
Not a programme you apply to as a company, but it determines which European VCs have fresh defence-mandated capital; track its fund commitments to know who can actually write you a cheque.
European Investment Bank Group
Debt, not grants: the EIB now finances defence companies that banks still avoid, and venture debt from its one-stop shop can extend runway without dilution once you have revenue or strong contracts.