Micro and small companies and startups have just won a new line of financing from Finep: Inovacred Expresso. The launch took place on December 10, at the 5th meeting of the ABDE Innovation Commission, in Rio de Janeiro. The line aims to support innovation in companies with annual gross operating revenues of up to R$ 16 million, through financing of up to R$ 150 thousand. No counterpart from companies is required and the financing term is up to four years, including the grace period. The 16 agents accredited to operate the Inovacred – which provides financing from R$ 150 thousand to R$ 10 million – will be responsible for operating the new line.
Unlike other Finep decentralization programs (Inovacred and Tecnova), there is no need to present a specific project to obtain the loan. It is enough for the company to prove that it fits into any of the categories below.
· Have received at least one of the following government support: tax incentives for R&D and technological innovation in the last five years; economic subsidy to R&D in the last ten years; funding for R&D and technological innovation projects in the last five years – with or without partnerships with universities or research institutes; RHAE/CNPq grants for researchers in companies in the last five years; venture capital contribution based on public resources in the last five years.
· Have a history in the area of Intellectual Property/Copyright: have a patent registration with the INPI in the last five years; have copyright registration in the last five years – applicable only in the case of software; have a patent application at the INPI in the same year as the loan application or in the two previous years.
· Being installed in Technological-Based Incubators or Technological Parks.“The main focus is to reach small companies that need additional resources to continue their innovation projects”, explains Marcelo Camargo, manager of Decentralized Financial Products at Finep, highlighting that “all companies with innovative characteristics will benefit”.
According to Camargo, Inovacred Expresso allows micro and small companies the option of obtaining smaller resources and with less bureaucracy. “Both the request form and the rendering of accounts are more simplified, which makes the process more agile”, says Camargo. According to him, another strong point of the new line is the possibility of carrying out operations with personal guarantee, that is, the guarantee for the loan can be given by the company's own partner, if applicable. For him, one of the main barriers that micro and small companies face to obtain financing is the presentation of guarantees. The smaller credit ticket allows for this flexibility.
With this novelty, Finep expands its financing possibilities and will be able to grant financing from R$ 1 to R$ 10 million for micro, small and medium-sized companies, in addition to startups. “We are going to unburden the demand for micro-enterprises”, concludes the executive.
EN 
PT 
