EIC defence-equity call draws €175 million in investment requests
Nine applicants from seven countries requested equity funding through a €100 million programme; no investment awards were announced.
Europe’s defence scaleups have another potential source of equity capital. The first EIC STEP Scale Up Defence call attracted requests exceeding its available budget.
What happened
On 29 October, the European Innovation Council reported nine applications from companies across seven countries. Applicants requested €175 million in equity investment through a programme with a €100 million budget for 2026.
The programme offers €10–30 million per company and aims to help catalyse financing rounds at least three times the EIC contribution. Applications were being evaluated, with results expected in February 2027.
Why it matters
Defence companies often need substantial capital to scale production and reach procurement milestones. Public equity participation could help attract private investors to rounds that are difficult to assemble on venture funding alone.
The bigger picture
These figures describe applications and requested investment, rather than completed financings. The next test is which companies receive backing, how much private capital joins them and whether the resulting rounds support meaningful industrial expansion.