October 4 (SeeNews) - Croatia's 30 million euro ($33 million) venture capital fund Feelsgood Social Impact Investment Fund has started operations, the European Investment Fund (EIF), one of the key investors in the project, said.
Feelsgood, which targets early- to growth-stage Croatian and Slovenian startups with an environmental and social impact, launched in Zagreb on October 3, EIF, which is part of the European Investment Bank group, said in a statement on Thursday.
The EIF contributed to the fund with 15 million euro, almost entirely covered by the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), the core of the Investment Plan for Europe, or Juncker Plan, the statement said.
Startups operating in financial inclusion, agriculture and farming, circular economy, education and healthcare sectors will be able to benefit from the funding.
"Feelsgood will be ready to provide long-awaited smart capital for the SMEs in Croatia and Slovenia who are determined to yield positive social and environmental impact in addition to profit," Renata Brkic, founding partner of the Feelsgood Fund, was quoted as saying in the statement.
Feelsgood is the first Croatian VC fund managed by a fully Croatian team, which is a sign of the maturing and development of the local financial market, the EIF said.
It added that there are at present three VC funds active in Croatia, two of which were set up with EIF's support.
Feelsgood is managed by Zagreb-based alternative asset management company Feelsgood Capital Partners.
In July, businessman Dinko Novoselec told local weekly magazine Lider that he and his partners are setting up the Feelsgood fund, whose target will be to invest in newly established companies and in those at an early stage of their operations, each investment ranging from one to two million euro.
($=0.9111 euro)