To the founding team keybotic This label was too much for him to refuse. Its co-founder recalls receiving public assistance: Irene Gomez– get the certificate Enise This has since this year officially separated what a ‘startup’ is from something that isn’t as simple as pressing a button. “It was very easy to do, so we did it,” reflects the entrepreneur, who is known outside many industries. tax advantages that comes with the title (this company still isn’t making money), but he sees in it a bet on the future. The thing is, in a matter of minutes this company made an invention. Robot dog performing inspection in industryhappened One of the first official initiatives in Spain.
He did this a few months after the law regulating entrepreneurial activities in the country and establishing this seal came into force officially; This happened exactly one year ago this Friday. After this first year of startup lawThere are now officially 604 technology-based emerging companies in Spain. There aren’t many, though, given that the same organization has funded around 2,000 in the last five years and Informa calculated there were around 23,000 ‘startups’ in the country last year CEO of this institution, Jose Bayonsees a clear indication that it is moving in the right direction on the balance sheet.
“The law is pioneering in Europe and the evaluation is positive: they have been coming to see us since 2016. France anyone Denmarkinnovative countries that want to see how this goes,” this official admits.It is the first law that gave legal administrative status to these companies.” he argues.
Same emphasis Co-founder and CEO of Bloome –another one of the certified companies–, Juanfran Sánchez. “It’s pretty common these days to hear people say they own a ‘startup,’ but there was nothing that told you that yes, it’s yours and you have a startup, too. innovative and scalable project“, this reflects the person who manages his daily life brand that aims to modernize the aesthetic medicine market. For him, he says, this seal opens doors for investors who are freed from investigating whether the company is effectively innovative and scalable.
Despite this, the small number of companies requesting certification (about 1,100 in total, of which 604 were approved and 301 were rejected) suggests that there is still a long way to go. “Credit is easier to sell, but there are many situations where certification is not given importance” echoes Enisa’s CEO himself.
“If I had to do this from scratch without presenting all the information I’ve already presented Requesting a loan from EnisaI wouldn’t have been certified today,” Sánchez admits, but it was less a matter of not paying attention to it and more a matter of prioritizing the pile of tasks an entrepreneur usually has on the table, especially in the early years.
Problems that remain
In short, the conclusion is that this year’s course has not changed the impressions made when this new legal framework becomes reality: This is a very good starting point. Giving this ecosystem the importance it deserves and bringing it to life Competing with surrounding countries under less unequal conditionsbut in practice, did not solve many of the important problems facing professionals.
“It is very good that there is a ‘startup’ law, because it is good that this sector, which has grown so much, is even known by a different name: the narrative that it creates wealth and is the future is being imposed. here”, he admits Managing partner of Inveready, Ignacio Fonts. “Some distinct disadvantages we had in the Spanish entrepreneurial ecosystem have been eliminated; not all but we were in line before and we are now [solo] bottom half of the table”, agrees BeHappy Investment fund president, Miguel Ángel Rodríguez Caveda.
Healing points
However, both identify several points of improvement. The thing is, the truth is A ‘startup’ will only be considered as such for the first five years of its life. (“A company like this will be in this situation for many years to come,” Fonts says) but also In order to benefit from tax exemptions, investors must purchase at least 5% of the company in question. (“Depending on valuations, 5% of a company is a very high figure,” Rodríguez Caveda emphasizes) and, above all, bureaucracy.
“Founding a company in Spain is still a headache,” criticizes the president of BeHappy Investments. Weeks pass between starting the process and obtaining the operating permit. “They have removed a number of obstacles to starting the company and are heading in the right direction, but they put in a number of obstacles that go against the spirit of simplification to characterize your ‘startup’ in this way,” says Inveready’s managing partner, who in addition to solving all this to claim the option in a second stage benefiting from the speaker Also encourage large companies and even the administration to oblige them to buy some of their goods or services from small businesses. of this kind. This investor summarizes, “What is beneficial for a company is sales; if it makes money, it already pays taxes.”
Entrepreneur Irene Gómez also points to bureaucracy, but in this case to criticize How difficult it is to manage an investment from abroad. “The main problem that I think this law does not solve is that international investment continues to be very complex,” explains Keybotic’s co-founder, listing steps such as having all parties agree to physically go to the notary and bring all the documents. If the documents are done correctly and the notary does not speak English, bring a sworn translator…
He concludes that the last straw was the contradiction it represents how expensive and complicated it is to claim these tax incentives or Social Security bonuses. So much so that, for example, in the first year, when they worked only in R&D, they stopped asking for deductions because the relevant procedures did not pay off.