International Conference "Financial and Investment Support for SMEs - Sofia International Money Expo" (SIM EXPO 2023), under the motto "Sofia - Regional Financial Hub," October 10-11, 2023
Period:
from
to
Registration:
from
to
Place:
Vitosha Hall, Inter Expo Center, Sofia
Project as of September 29, 2023
International Conference "Financial and Investment Support for SMEs - Sofia International Money Expo /SIMExpo/ 2023, October 10 and 11, 2023, Inter Expo Center, Hall "Vitosha"
SOFIA – REGIONAL FINANCIAL HUB
AGENDA
October 10, 2022 /Tuesday/
|
09.00 – 9.30 |
Registration and coffee |
|
09.30 – 10.30 |
Plenary Session Moderator: Mr. Vladimir Tomov, Chairman of the Investment Council of BSMEPA Mrs. Maria Gabriel, Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Bulgaria and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr. Bogdan Bogdanov, Minister of Economy and Industry Mrs. Milena Stoycheva, Minister of Innovation and Growth Mr. Andrey Tsekov, Minister of Regional Development and Public Works Representative of Sofia Municipality Mr. Teodor Radonov – Head of the Representation of the European Investment Bank in Bulgaria Mrs. Svetoslava Georgieva - Chair of the European Innovation Council Fund, Member of the Investment Committee of InvestEU Representative of the Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB) Mrs. Nadezhda Leruste – Development Bank of the Council of Europe Mrs. Petya Dimitrova – Chair of the Board of the Association of Banks in Bulgaria Mr. Tsvetan Simeonov, Chairman of the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) Dr. Boyko Takov, Executive Director of the Executive Agency for the Promotion of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) |
|
10.30-12.00 |
Big Money for Small and Medium-sized Businesses – European Funding Programs for SMEs Moderator: Mr. Vladimir Tomov, Chairman of the Investment Council of BCCI Opportunities for financing SMEs under the Recovery and Resilience Plan Operational Programme "Competitiveness and Innovation in Enterprises" 2021-2027 Operational Programme "Programme for Scientific Research, Innovation, and Digitalization for Smart Transformation" 2021-2027 Financial framework of European cross-border cooperation programs |
|
12.00–13.00 |
Coffee break |
|
Panel discussions |
|
|
13.00-14.00 |
Equity investment to support business growth. Sofia as a regional hub Moderator: Mr. Pavel Velkov, Managing Partner at Morningside Hill Capital With the participation of Mr. Hristo Stoyanov - Regional Manager of EIF in Bulgaria, Pavel Lisev – CEO and Member of the Board of Directors of the Fund of Funds, representative of BDB (tbc), Ivaylo Gospodinov representative of BlackPeak Capital, Filip Genov – CEO of CFN, Nikolay Martinov- Managing Partner at Impetus Capital, Nadya Sultanova- Urban Impact Ventures Topics: Trends in equity investment in Europe and Bulgaria in recent years. Strengths and weaknesses of equity investment for entrepreneurs and comparisons with other forms of financing. Opportunities for funding startups and businesses from abroad in Bulgaria. Funds based in Bulgaria with a regional and international investment focus. Development of institutional investment in Bulgaria and future expectations. Necessary changes in the ecosystem to attract foreign capital. |
|
14.00-15.00 |
Guarantee and financial instruments to support businesses Moderator: Mr. Nikolay Tsenkov, CEO of OGFMSP, Sofia Municipality With the participation of: Mr. Teodor Radonov - Head of the Representation of the European Investment Bank in Bulgaria, Biser Petkov – CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Fund of Funds, Iliya Karanikolov- Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Bulgarian Development Bank, Dr. Kiril Velichkov - Director of "European Projects and Financial Institutions" at OBB, Kalina Angelova - Manager of "European Funds", UniCredit Bulbank Topics: Guarantee and financial instruments to support business development. Special role of European and Bulgarian institutions in supporting and developing financial instruments for SMEs in Bulgaria. Structuring guarantee and financial instruments, news in structuring, combining with grant elements, coordination with businesses in structuring instruments, focus on innovative SMEs and risk-sharing with intermediary banks. State and municipal instruments for guaranteeing companies with Bulgarian and foreign participation in Bulgaria. |
|
15.00-15.30 |
Coffee break |
|
15.30-16.30 |
Foreign direct investments - benefit for business and stimulus for the economy Moderator: Mrs. Gabriela Dimitrova, Director of International Cooperation and International Organizations at BCCI With the participation of Dr. Boyko Takov, Executive Director of EAP Representative of the Turkish SME Agency Representative of the Bulgarian Investment Agency Victor Gusev, Head of the Department at SAPE Mrs. Sinem Tashtam - Commercial Attache of Turkey in Bulgaria Mr. Dimitrios Mihias, Plenipotentiary Minister, Trade Department at the Embassy of Greece in Bulgaria Mr. Filipe-Giuseppe Kupfer, Trade Advisor at the Embassy of Austria in Bulgaria Mr. Radu Calin-Moldovan – Plenipotentiary Minister at the Embassy of Romania in Bulgaria (tbc) Representative from the Embassy of Italy in Bulgaria (tbc) Representative from the Embassy of Germany in Bulgaria (tbc) Topics: Bulgaria/Sofia - a desired investment destination. Guidelines for successful investment projects. Examples of new investments in Bulgaria. Challenges in providing favorable conditions for business. Proposals for rapid changes in the economic environment to stimulate investments. Examples of best practices for attracting investments. |
|
16.30-17.30 |
Challenges for the development and support of SME exports - financial, insurance, and guarantee instruments Moderator: Mr. Vladimir Tomov, Chairman of the Investment Council of BCCI With the participation of: Dr. Galabin Galabov – Executive Director of BAIA, Rafi Shirinyan - Regional Credit Director and Manager of "TradeWind Factoring" EOOD, representative of Ebery Bulgaria, representative of Bulgarian Postbank (tbc), Rayna Mitkova – CEO of EOS Matrix, Mrs. Neli Yolovska, Chief Sales Officer of BORIKA Topics: Insurance, financial, and guarantee products to support the exports of companies. Financial payments for exports – new forms and opportunities for companies. Financial products for restructuring and development of companies. |
October 11, 2022 /Wednesday/
|
9.30 – 10.00 |
Registration and coffee |
|
10.00 – 11.00 |
Financial and investment instruments to support green energy and energy efficiency projects, ESG Moderator: Dr. Docha Vasileva, Director of the Project Information and Financing Department at the Fund of Funds With the participation of: Representative of EBRD for Bulgaria (tbc), Mrs. Irena Pencheva – Executive Director of the National Trust Eco Fund, Mrs. Miglena Dimitrova - Director of the Green Finance & Energy Centre (Green Center at BSE), Bilyana Mladenova-Mileva – ESG Manager at UniCredit Bulbank, Mr. Ivaylo Alexiev, CEO of AUR, Galya Vasileva, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Sources Fund, Iskra Yovkova- Managing Director uIMPACT Topics: Financial and investment instruments for green investments. Promoting the development of green energy and technologies. Sustainable banking financing. ESG policies and tools for sustainable business development. |
|
11.00-12.00 |
Investment and financial instruments to support social and youth entrepreneurship Moderator: Dr. Docha Vasileva, Director of the Project Information and Financing Department at the Fund of Funds With the participation of: Mrs. Nadezhda Leruste – Director for Bulgaria at the Development Bank of the Council of Europe, BRCB, Mrs. Martina Grigorova – Executive Director of SIS Credit, Mrs. Gabriela Dimitrova – Director of International Cooperation and International Organizations at BCCI, Mr. Nikolay Tsenkov, Manager of the Municipal Guarantee Fund for Small and Medium Enterprises at Sofia Municipality, Representative of the Faculty of Economics at Sofia University Topics: Trends in promoting social and youth entrepreneurship in Europe and Bulgaria in recent years. Equity and debt instruments to support youth entrepreneurship, key parameters and requirements. Promoting student entrepreneurship and international student business cooperation. What needs to change in the ecosystem for the development of social and youth entrepreneurship. |
|
12.00 - 13.00 |
Networking with partners |
download to pdf
Vitosha Hall, Inter Expo Center, Sofia
Description of the event
The Bulgarian Small and Medium Enterprises Promotion Agency (BSMEPA), in partnership with the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) and the Investment Council at BCCI, in collaboration with Sofia Municipality, is organizing the 4th edition of the International Conference "Financial and Investment Support for SMEs - Sofia International Money Expo" (SIM EXPO 2023) under the motto "Sofia - Regional Financial Hub." The event will take place on October 10-11, 2023, in the Vitosha Hall at the Inter Expo Center in Sofia.
The main goal of the event is to enhance the financial and investment culture of small and medium-sized enterprises' representatives by providing them with valuable information on the opportunities for developing their businesses through the use of various financial and investment instruments in an accessible way. Within the event, financial institutions, investment and guarantee funds, and investors are expected to present their products in support of enterprises.
The presentations and discussions at the conference will showcase investment activity, planned investments, the need for financing, and funding sources for small and medium-sized enterprises, as well as businesses' attitudes and readiness for the green transition.
The preliminary program of the event includes current topics such as:
- Opportunities for financing SMEs under the Recovery and Resilience Plan, the Operational Program "Competitiveness and Innovation of Enterprises" 2021-2027, and the Operational Program "Research, Innovation, and Digitalization for Economic Transformation" 2021-2027.
- The financial framework of European Cross-Border Cooperation Programs.
- Equity investment in support of business growth.
- Sofia as a regional investment hub.
- Opportunities for financing startups and foreign businesses in Bulgaria.
- Guarantee and financial instruments in support of businesses.
- Foreign direct investments - a benefit for businesses and an economic stimulus.
- Promoting the development of green energy and technologies. Financial and investment instruments in support of green energy and energy efficiency projects.
I am pleased to invite you to participate in the upcoming International Conference "Financial and Investment Support for SMEs - Sofia International Money Expo" (SIM EXPO 2023) under the motto "Sofia - Regional Financial Hub," which will take place on October 10-11, 2023, in the Vitosha Hall at the Inter Expo Center, Sofia.
If interested, registration for the event profile can be made on the B2B Connect platform or at: registration link by October 6, 2023.
For additional information, you can contact Natalia Necheva at phone: 02/ 940 79 37 and Tomislav Atanasov at phone: 02/ 940 79 83.
Participation in the event is free and is organized as part of Activity 7, "Organizing and Conducting Business Forums, Contact Exchanges, Conferences, and Other Networking Events with Bilateral Meetings Between Bulgarian and Foreign Companies in the Country," under project No. BG16RFPR001-1.002-0001-C01 "Implementation of Measures for the Internationalization of Bulgarian SMEs through the Support of the Bulgarian Small and Medium Enterprises Promotion Agency" (BSMEPA), funded by the European Regional Development Fund under the "Competitiveness and Innovation in Enterprises" Program, 2021-2027, in which BSMEPA is the institutional beneficiary.
Sectors
- multiple sectors