Microcredits for young entrepreneurs

With the aim of fostering self-employment, Jordi Marquet, General Director of UAB Research Park (PRUAB), and José Francisco de Conrado, President of MicroBank, signed on 7 September a collaboration agreement to help UAB students and graduates finance their business proposals through microcredits. MicroBank will invest up to one million euros in credits per year.

08/09/2011

Each applicant will be able to apply for up to 25,000 euros in microcredits. The projects must include a business plan and a favourable report by PRUAB on the plan's viability, which Microbank will analyse before approving the petition.

PRUAB aims to foster the transfer of technology and knowledge, to promote entrepreneurial activities based on science and to facilitate interactions between research, business sectors and society in general. Since 2001, it has given support to the creation of 52 research-based firms in emerging sectors such as biomedicine and biotechnology, in information and communication technologies, in nanoscience and nanotechnology, etc. In addition, PRUAB offers incubation areas at its Eureka Building, where both spin-off companies and consolidated firms can be found.

MicroBank, which belongs to "la Caixa", has become the financial entity which dedicates the largest amount of resources to promoting projects through microcredits. Since 2007 it is dedicated to working directly with universities to foster entrepreneurship amongst students, helping them enter the labour market and promoting their personal and professional development.