Croatian Agency for Small Business, Innovation and Investment

Supports Croatian small businesses with entrepreneurship, innovation, investment, and commercialization programs.

Croatian Agency for Small Business, Innovation and Investment, better known as HAMAG-BICRO, is Croatia's national support body for SMEs, innovation, and investment. Formed in 2014 from the merger of HAMAG-INVEST and BICRO, it works in euros and sits at the center of Croatia's EU-cofinanced innovation funding landscape.

Its portfolio combines grants, vouchers, and financial instruments. Core routes include the Proof of Concept Programme up to EUR 70,000, Eurostars-3 national co-funding up to EUR 200,000, the Acceleration Programme up to EUR 27,000, and Innovation Vouchers up to EUR 10,000; the same agency also administers loans and guarantees alongside EU-backed calls under NPOO and OPCC. The sectors attached to the funder cover AI infrastructure, biotech, hardware, materials, medtech, climate, manufacturing, and IoT and edge.

The agency is a fit for founders moving from research into validation, market entry, or international collaboration. Its strongest applicants usually bring a clear commercialization case, an eligible Croatian base, and a program match that can absorb co-financing or milestone-based support.