European parliament has today voted overwhelmingly in favour of a bill enabling the creation of a new label identifying social entrepreneurship investment funds (EuSEF), as well as introducing Europe-wide regulation of venture capital.
The changes to the law regarding the creation of the framework will take immediate effect, creating a brand new kind of European investment fund for the social economy.
Commissioner Barnier has welcomed the vote, saying “These new EU initiatives will increase opportunities for innovative start-ups or social businesses to find capital.
“Better funding for smaller companies is key for Europe’s economy and it is now up to enterprising fund managers to seize the new opportunities as a matter of urgency”.
Sven Giegold, German Green MEP and vice-president of the Intergroup for Social Economy, has hailed today’s decision as a great success:
“The EuSEF legislation has for the first time created a fund that lays the foundations for the strengthening of the social economy. A social economy is the right response to one of the key problems that has pushed us into the current crisis: the short-term pursuit of profit.”
Giegold further predicts that the amendments will lead to positive outcomes in areas such as social housing, and will unlock potential for improved fair-trade agreements with developing countries.
Filippo Addarii, Euclid Network executive director and member of the expert group on social business, hosted by DG Market, said:
“We are excited by this new development. The Commission is taking the lead in fostering a European market for social investments. We have been part of the process from the beginning and intend to support Brussels in its efforts to connect social investors from across Europe. Our ambition is to encourage the EU to extend this policy beyond the single market, applying its social investment framework to enlargement policy, aid policy and global financial markets.
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