SMEs supported by COSME
SMEs supported by COSME © Jo@net 6 December, 2013

Council approves COSME to support SMEs

The European Council has approved a programme in support of the competitiveness of EU enterprises for the years 2014-2020.

The new programme, also known as the COSME programme, will pay particular attention to the specific needs of micro and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

The COSME programme, which has a budget of €2.3bn in current prices for the seven years, is designed to contribute to the competitiveness of EU companies by improving their access to finance, access to markets both inside the EU and internationally, framework conditions for businesses, and the promotion of entrepreneurship.

Given the crucial role of SMEs as drivers of growth and job creation, the COSME programme is embedded in the Europe 2020 strategy, which is drawn up to counter the effects of the economic crisis and to prepare the EU for the next decade.

COSME will support actions to facilitate access to finance for SMEs from the start-up phase to the growth stage.

The financial instruments under COSME will include an equity facility and a loan guarantee facility which may be complementary to the use of national financial instruments for SMEs under the EU cohesion programmes and those established for SMEs under the Horizon 2020 programme for research and innovation.