IMBC.FiVE
About Us
Since June 2024, the IMBC Group’s activities have been further strengthened by the creation of a 5th European subsidiary: IMBC.FiVE – Financing Innovation Value(s) & Environment.
IMBC.FiVE provides financing to a wide range of companies, both innovative and non-innovative, in a variety of forms to best meet their needs.
With financial resources totaling €24,177,196.01, IMBC.FiVE has been financing projects in its region for several months.
In just a few months, more than half of IMBC.FiVE’s resources have been allocated to companies in a wide variety of sectors.
These include:
- Bel Fibres, active in paper and cardboard recycling
- Fairwind, providing solutions to support companies in their energy transition
- Sita Gastronomia Italiana, a key player in Italian food products
- Tradyglass, decorator of branded glassware and bottles and manufacturer and decorator of polymer glassware
- My Engineering, a design office supporting industrial projects for pharmaceutical companies
- La Passion du Bois, artisanal joinery and carpentry specializing in traditional restoration
An investment fund co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund and the Walloon Region
IMBC.FiVE is an investment fund co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the Walloon Region. It aims to enable small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to realize their investments and projects. Since its creation in June 2024, IMBC.FiVE has received nearly €24,000,000 in funding under the 2021–2027 ERDF program.
IMBC.FiVE’s activities fall within the scope of Measure 5b “Financial instruments (SMEs) – Financial instrument No. 2 – Venture capital, innovation support, seed capital and marketing tools,” which comprises three components: “Venture capital tool,” “Innovation support,” and “Seed capital and marketing support,” and Measure 5c “Financial instruments (SMEs) – Digital transformation tool for SMEs.”
Measures
Measure 5b – Financial instruments (SMEs) – Venture capital, innovation support, seed capital, and marketing tools
1. Venture Capital Tool
- Investment & development financing
- Financing growth and working capital
- Financing buyouts and acquisitions
- Financing startups
2. Innovation Support
- Financing companies that implement innovations
- Financing innovative startups
- Financing R&D projects
- Financing to protect innovations
3. Seed Capital and Marketing Support
The range of products offered will support the financing and development of new or growing companies. These products are intended to help companies raise funds to launch or accelerate the marketing of a product.
5c – Financial instruments (SMEs) – Digital transformation tool for SMEs
- Digitalizing business processes
- Integrating digital skills internally by hiring or using a consultant to implement digital tools
- Securing and digitalizing IT infrastructure
- Digitalizing sales strategies
Beneficiary Companies
In order to benefit from our company’s products and services,
a company must meet the following criteria:
It must meet the definition of a small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) as defined in Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC of May 6, 2003;
It must have its headquarters, or undertake to establish such, in the Mons-Borinage districts or the communes of the Centre Region (La Louvière, Le Roeulx, Ecaussinnes, Braine-le-Comte, Soignies, Estinnes, Binche, Morlanwelz, Anderlues, Chapelle-Lez-Herlaimont, Manage and Seneffe in the province of Hainaut). Alternatively, it may be located in an area that is eligible for the measures implemented by the latter, provided that prior consultation is conducted with the operator of the measure that is usually implemented in that area;
It must not be considered to be a company in financial difficulty according to the EU’s definition, unless it is exempt under the de minimis aid or temporary state aid rules established to address exceptional circumstances, as outlined in Article 7 (1) d) of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) Regulation 2021/1058 of June 24, 2021.
It must not belong to one of the sectors excluded from the scope of the ERDF, or from the European Regulation applicable in the event of aid being granted (i.e., General Block Exemption Regulation 651/2014 or Commission “de minimis” Regulation no. 2023/2831 of December 13, 2023, where applicable);
It must not be subject to a recovery order following the European Commission’s previous decision to declare the aid illegal and incompatible with the common market;
However, in order to secure financing, the project must be analyzed to determine its viability and profitability, based on a business plan that demonstrates the technical, commercial, economic, and financial feasibility of the project.
Forms of Intervention
Interventions can take the form of various types of fixed-rate loans (such as convertible, secured, subordinated, unsecured, fixed-term, and bullet loans) or equity investments in beneficiary companies, depending on the type of intervention. These interventions can be adjusted according to the company’s needs, the nature of the investments to be made, and the selected aid scheme.
Regulations
The measures implemented by IMBC.FiVE are in line with the following European regulations:
Regulation (EU) No. 2021/1058 of the European Parliament and of the Council of June 24, 2021 on the European Regional Development Fund and on the Cohesion Fund;
Regulation (EU) No. 2021/1060 of the European Parliament and of the Council of June 24, 2021 laying down common provisions on the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund Plus, the Cohesion Fund, the Just Transition Fund and the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund and financial rules for those and for the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund, the Internal Security Fund and the Instrument for Financial Support for Border Management and Visa Policy.
Commission Regulation (EU) No. 651/2014 of June 17, 2014, declaring certain categories of aid compatible with the internal market in application of Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, in particular through the following types of aid:
- aid to help SMEs access financing (risk financing aid and aid for startups);
- aid for research, development, and innovation, including aid for research and development projects, innovation aid for SMEs, and aid for process and organizational innovation;
- Regional investment aid and aid for SMEs.
Commission Regulation (EU) No. 2023/2831 of December 13, 2023 on the application of Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union to de minimis aid.
Contact
IMBC.FiVE
Headquarters: 12-14 Rue des Quatre Fils Aymon, B-7000 MONS
Belgian companies database No.: 1010421284
Email: vasb@vzop.or
More Information
ERDF in Wallonia
European Regulations
Wallonia Portal