Accelerated growth: Where start-ups in Romania go to develop

As the Romanian start-up scene has begun to develop in recent years, so has the surrounding eco-system supporting it. The accelerators and acceleration programs available to local entrepreneurs have multiplied each year, offering mentoring, connections and, sometimes, early-stage funding. Below is a list of some of the incubators and accelerators that local start-ups can apply to. Based in Cluj-Napoca,Spherik Accelerator launched with the mission to connect start-ups with strategic resources and support the growth of the local ecosystem. Its programs cover entrepreneurial education, support with product building and marketing strategy, events and networking opportunities, and legal, financial and accounting advice. The accelerator also makes available office space in Liberty Technology Park in Cluj-Napoca. The accelerator counts among its founders two Cluj-Napoca universities: Babes-Bolyai and the Technical University, Banca Transilvania, and Liberty Technology Park Cluj. Further details here. Also based in Cluj-Napoca is Seed for Tech, the product investment division of Fortech, one of the largest software services companies in Romania. It can help with product development, and business and marketing support. Under a business partnership model, it can co-invest in highly promising ideas and teams. Further details here. Offering a wider ecosystem for start-ups, Startup Transilvania Entrepreneurship and Innovation Center aims to develop and finance new entrepreneurial projects in the region of Transylvania. It includes a digital incubator and an incubation program for entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs who create innovative technology and IT products in Cluj. Further details here. In its turn, the MVP Academy acceleration program supported tech start-ups in defining their product and go-to-market strategy, building a team, generate early traction and obtain pre-seed or seed financing. The program was developed by TechHub Bucharest, and by 2017 the total financing of all the MVP Academy alumni amounted to over EUR 1.7 million. Further details here. Not an accelerator but an acceleration fund for startups in Romania is Risky Business, set up at the beginning of last year. The fund was established by American entrepreneur Jennifer Austin and Romanian entrepreneurs Radu Iuhas, Bogdan Colceriu, Vlad Iuhas, and Adrian Horotan. In 2017, the acceleration fund planned invest up to EUR 20,000 in around 15 companies. Last year, telecom group Orange launched its