OREANDA-NEWS. June 17, 2016. The fund, announced in March by the representatives of PZU, Ministry of Science and Higher Education and National Center for Research and Development (NCBR), is taking tangible shape. Its concept and name were presented at the IMPACT’16: 4.0 Economy Congress in Krak?w. The Witelo Fund will be established as a closed-end non-public asset investment fund managed by TFI PZU.

Witelo is a joint program of the PZU Group and National Center for Research and Development executed under the patronage of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education and Ministry of Economic Development. Its role is to create an ecosystem friendly to venture capital entities, in order to enable them to execute innovative projects in Poland.

- Witelo is a very important element of an ecosystem friendly to entrepreneurs who commercialize the output of academic research. Supporting this process is of key importance for the Polish government. Development of science and research and development activities may make the Fourth Industrial Revolution, which is the topic of the Impact’16 Congress, happen faster than we expect – says Jaros?aw Gowin, Minister of Science and Higher Education.

To start with, the investment resources of the Witelo program amount to PLN 500 million.

 - The Witelo Fund intends to invest in leading global VC funds to promote Poland as the destination for investments and execution of innovative projects. We intend to popularize all advantages of the domestic market, together with co-investment opportunities for Polish companies. Our ambition is to make Poland an international hub for VC start-ups for Europe. We want leading VC funds to execute their projects here – emphasizes Pawe? Sur?wka, PZU Life management board member.

Venture capital entities will be a tool for allocation of the capital accumulated in the Witelo Fund. The joint initiative is to become a bridge connecting the Polish ecosystem with global innovation centers, which will facilitate transfer of know-how. Creation of appropriate conditions for the activity of VC funds in our country will translate, at the same time, into promotion of Poland as the biggest innovation hub in Central and Eastern Europe.

- The Fund has a chance to become a trampoline for execution of many innovative solutions which will directly translate into development of the Polish economy. Removing the barriers limiting commercialization of R&D efforts is key to building Poland’s competitiveness in the international arena – concludes professor Maciej Chorowski, director of the National Center for Research and Development.

The managers of the Witelo Fund are planning to make the first investments before the end of the year. Visit www.witelofund.com