Today, 7 October 2022, the first lecture was held for the students who chose the new discipline — European Funds and Financial Instruments — at the Faculty of Economics of Sofia University (SU).

Established on the initiative of the Fund of Funds, the programme builds on our partnership with Sofia University, the foundations of which were laid with the Memorandum of Cooperation signed this spring. The main focus of the course is to nourish an entrepreneurial spirit in young people.

During the opening ceremony, the students expressed their appreciation for the discipline as one of the most interesting, but equally as an opportunity to interact and learn from real actors in business. The program includes lectures from professionals with proven experience in the ecosystem who will present valuable examples from their practice. Our Executive Director Martin Gikov, together with the Project Manager Dochka Vassileva PhD (Acting Director of Project Information and Financing at FoF) and Assoc. Prof Boryana Bogdanova PhD (Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Economics) opened the academic year in front of the future young entrepreneurs, assuring them that the program will build on theory with opportunities for internships, as well as formal and informal meetings with key actors in business.

Among the speakers who will provide interactive, high-quality training to the students enrolled are managers at the Fund of Funds and partners from venture capital funds, the Bulgarian Private Equity and Venture Capital Association, banks, ministries, and the European Commission's InvestEU Investment Committee.

The course covers the lectures in the following major areas: EU funds and programmes; Legal and institutional framework of EU financing; Financial instruments co-financed by the EU; Financial intermediaries; Equity investments; Creation and financing of start-ups; Market mechanisms applied in development financing and their control; Financial instruments at EU level; Sustainable financing, etc.