Start it Fund

Exclusively for founders from the Start it @KBC community

Apply for funding Join Start it @KBC

Founder pitching on stage at a Start it @KBC event

Early-stage funding | ~€300K

€150K to €450K From Start it Fund, CLA

Fast, because we already know you | < 1 month

from first meeting to money in the bank

Growth funding, follow-on | Up to €5M

€500K up to €2.5M per round From KBC Securities, priced rounds

01 No strings attached

You never have to accept funding to join the program.

02 Founder centric

No board seats, no milestones, no control over how you run your company.

03 Merit based

Every sector, every background. We judge how fast you progress, not your labels.

04 Pay it forward

Part of the profits goes back to Start it @KBC to support the next generation of founders.

What Start it Fund is

KBC invests €100M in founders from the Start it @KBC community. €50M goes to convertible loans (CLAs), typically for early stage startups, managed by Start it Fund. The other €50M goes to priced rounds, typically for growth stage startups, managed by KBC Securities.

We only invest after you, as a founder, have been accepted into the program, never before. That keeps the accelerator open to everyone, free of charge and without taking any equity.

Who can apply

Start it Fund invests only in founders who were accepted into one of our programs. This includes all alumni since our first cohort in 2014. We typically invest after the sixth month of the program, not at the start, so we get to know each other well before we make an investment decision.

Current participants

Apply after the sixth month of the program, earlier in exceptional cases.

Alumni startups

Your startup stays eligible after the program ends, whichever year you joined.

Alumni founders

Started a new company after the program? You can apply for funding with your new startup directly, without joining the program again.

Never joined before?

Apply for the next cohort first. Having joined the program as a founder is a condition to be eligible for funding.

From first meeting to money in the bank in less than a month

01 | 1 to 2 weeksFirst meetings2 to 3 meetings with the investment team, in which we agree on all terms together.

02Internal decisionOur team decides whether to propose your investment to the Investment Committee.

03 | 2 weeksMemo and legal checkWe write the memo and do the legal check in parallel, with little effort from you.

04Investment CommitteeA final decision, made on the spot.

05 | 3 daysMoney in the bankSigned agreement and transfer.

What we look for

Ambition, learning speed, execution speed and resilience, as we see them over time, matter more to us than a single pitch.

Market

A big problem in a big or fast growing market.

Why now?

Team

Background, right to win, ambition, grit.

Why you?

Progress

Not just where you are, but how fast you move.

How fast?

Ask

The right amount at fair economic conditions.

Return potential?

Recognition as top 1% of Start it @KBC applicants

Helps you attract other investors, talent and media coverage.

1 year of support without control

On demand coaching, office space and connections, including alumni founders who built and sold successful companies.

Up to €5M growth funding via KBC Securities

Priced rounds of €500K up to €2.5M per round, for Start it Fund startups and other strong performers. Plus corporate finance expertise, M&A support and IPO guidance.

What selected startups receive

€300K

on average, from €150K to €450K, as a convertible loan (CLA)

Flexible conditions. Every startup is different, so the discount, interest rate and cap are agreed per startup.
Founder friendly CLA. No toxic terms, no milestones, no board seats.

Let's work together

Founders

Join Start it @KBC first

Funding is only open to founders from the Start it @KBC community.

Apply for the next cohort

Participants & Alumni

Apply for funding

Apply below, or alternatively mail fund@startitx.com