Malta Enterprise is launching a start-up finance scheme to assist the development and growth of small start-ups in their early stages of development.

The scheme is mainly aimed at companies engaged in manufacturing, information technology, research and development, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals and life sciences.

Malta Enterprise will be providing support linked to private equity, crowdfunding and the procurement of machinery and equipment. Depending on the type of support provided, assistance may be up to €100,000 if linked to crowdfunding campaigns and up to €200,000 when the support is linked to private equity or required to fund the procurement of machinery and equipment.

If the applicant qualifies as a knowledge-based start-up and is requesting support for the procurement of machinery and equipment, the assistance may increase to €500,000.

Malta Enterprise will be providing this support in the form of repayable assistance, with an annual simple interest rate calculated on the balance at the end of each year. This interest rate will increase the longer the beneficiary takes to repay the funds. Although the assistance should be repaid within 10 years, the corporation may agree to extend the repayment period in-line with the performance of the supported undertaking.

More information on the scheme can be found on www.maltaenterprise.com or by calling 144.