Seed and venture funds: who invests in early Irish companies, and at what stage

What these funds are

A venture capital fund raises money from investors, often including the State, and uses it to buy shares in young companies. It makes money when a company is sold, or listed on a stock market, for more than the fund paid.

Seed is the first round of professional investment, when the product is new and sales are small. Series A is the next round, when the product is selling and the company needs money to expand. Some funds also invest at pre-seed, the very first outside money. Enterprise Ireland's scheme treats a fund as a seed fund when most of its money goes into seed rounds.

The investment is equity. Equity means shares, so the fund becomes a part-owner. Nothing is repaid, but the founders own less of the company afterwards.

How the State is involved

Enterprise Ireland has put money into venture funds since 1994 through its Seed and Venture Capital Scheme. It invests in the funds, not in your company. The fund managers decide who gets money.

The current scheme runs from 2025 to 2029 with €250 million. Its first call, for up to €100 million, was for seed funds and Series A funds. A manager that takes the money must invest twice Enterprise Ireland's commitment in Irish companies.

A Dáil answer in September 2025 said Enterprise Ireland expected to make commitments to funds in the last quarter of 2025. We could not find a published list of the funds chosen under the new scheme.

The Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, ISIF, is the State's investment fund, managed by the National Treasury Management Agency. It invests in venture funds too, and publishes its portfolio. When ISIF invests directly in a company, it is a minority shareholder, meaning it owns less than half, alongside other investors. Its direct deals are large, such as a round of up to €49 million announced in 2026.

Funds that announced new investments in 2026

Enterprise Ireland's 2024 report lists 15 funds under its last scheme. We have listed only the managers that had announced a new investment in 2026 when we checked on 3 October 2026. Stage, sector and size are as Enterprise Ireland or ISIF describe them.

The report also lists specialist funds for life sciences, healthcare and university research spin-outs, and larger funds that invest at later stages. The full list, with contact details, is in Enterprise Ireland's Seed and Venture Capital Schemes Report 2024.

What a fund looks for, and how few get it

Enterprise Ireland says the managers it backs are looking for companies that can compete on the global stage and that need significant equity investment to develop their products and services.

The scheme's target sectors are software, electronics, fintech, cyber security, life sciences, medtech, industrial products and food. Priority goes to artificial intelligence, deep tech, climate and sustainability, and food and agricultural technology.

The numbers show how selective this is. In 2025 the funds in the scheme invested €80 million in 76 Irish companies. In 2024 it was €101.9 million in 74 companies, an average of €1.4 million each.

Who will not get venture money

A local business will not. A fund needs a company it can sell for many times what it paid. A shop, cafe, pub, salon, trade or local service cannot offer that, so funds do not consider them, whatever the profits.

Nor will a company looking for a small sum. Among the funds in its 2019 to 2024 scheme, the smallest range Enterprise Ireland's report gives is €150,000 to €650,000 a round. For less than that, and earlier, the usual source is business angels, who typically put in €25,000 to €250,000 each.

In the west there is also the Western Development Commission, which lends to and invests in firms in seven western counties.

For an ordinary small business, the realistic options are small State-backed loans through Microfinance Ireland and the mentoring and other local supports a Local Enterprise Office offers.

How to approach a fund

1. Check the fund's stage and sector against your company. A fintech fund will not read a food pitch.
2. Prepare a pitch deck, which is a short set of slides. NDRC, the State-backed accelerator, says a good deck covers the problem, the solution, the size of the market, the business model, progress so far and the team.
3. See what else you can line up. A seed round is often shared between a fund, angels and Enterprise Ireland, which only joins rounds that private investors are already backing.
4. Contact the fund through its own website. Some have a pitch form.
5. Expect questions and checks before any offer. Investors call this due diligence.

Common questions