Alexander De Croo is Deputy Prime Minister for Open VLD and Minister of Development Cooperation, Digital Agenda, Telecom and Postal Services in the Michel I Government. As Minister of Development Cooperation, he focuses on strengthening human rights and promoting local economic growth in the partner countries. The Digital Agenda, Telecom and Postal Services portfolio focuses on the maximisation of the economic potential of the digital economy. Graduated in Business Engineering, Alexander De Croo completed an MBA at the Kellogg School of Management (Northwestern University) in Chicago (United States), in 2004. Between 1999 and 2006, he was employed as a strategy consultant at The Boston Consulting Group, one of the leading management consulting firms worldwide. In 2006, he founded his own company: Darts-IP, a consulting company in the field of intellectual property rights, which today operates throughout the world.

1. digitalbelgium.be @digitalagendaBE

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1 year
digital belgium

3. digitalbelgium.be @digitalagendaBE
start-ups
central focus

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more talent
stronger client base
enabling context
access to investors

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more talent
 lowered labour cost
 increased flexilibity
 night work allowed
(ecomm)
 more digital champions

7. digitalbelgium.be @digitalagendaBE
stronger client base
 one EU digital single
market
 ambitious open data policy

8. digitalbelgium.be @digitalagendaBE
enabling context
 top-notch infrastructure
 digital act: digital = paper

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access to investors
 tax shelter for start-ups
 stimulating crowdfunding
 EU-market for scaling up

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tax shelter start-ups
1. direct investments
2. (credit) crowdfunding
3. start-up funds

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tax shelter start-ups
 -30% or -45% income tax
 max. 100.000/year
 max. 30% of capital
 min. 48 months

12. digitalbelgium.be @digitalagendaBE
tax shelter start-ups
 start-ups up to 4 years
 created from Jan 1st, 2013
 not listed on stock market
 max. 250.000 euro/start-up

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What’s happening in ?
Source: O Mohout - Sirris

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~35 collected >1M in 2015
Source: O Mohout - Sirris

15. digitalbelgium.be @digitalagendaBE
And what about 2016?
# number of deals
1 UK (48)
2 France (39)
3 Germany (21)
4 Sweden (12)
5 BELGIUM (11)
# amount raised
1 UK (589M)
2 France (235M)
3 Germany (176M)
… …
7 BELGIUM (26M)
Source: O Mohout - Sirris

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peer-to-peer
economy

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p2p proof policy
 goodbye old schemes
 p2p passport if
occassional
 simple & rewarding if
semi-professional

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