Do startups in CEE take grants before raising pre-seed?
About one in seven founders raising in CEE already has one. 15% of the CEE founders who applied to BADideas in 2026 so far had won a grant, about the same as in 2025. Founders with a grant asked for a median of €640,000, against €500,000 for those without.
The figures
| Kind of grant, CEE applicants with one, 2026 (to date) | Share |
|---|---|
| National programmes | 30% |
| EU programmes | 45% |
| Accelerator or competition prizes | 11% |
| Corporate | 11% |
In BADideas application data, founders with a grant are earlier: 31% had revenue, against 40% of those without one.
What is changing
| Quarter | CEE applicants with a grant |
|---|---|
| Q2 2025 | 19% |
| Q3 2025 | 19% |
| Q4 2025 | 15% |
| Q1 2026 | 16% |
| Q2 2026 | 14% |
| Q3 2026 | 17% |
Across CEE
CEE founders who applied in 2025 and 2026 so far, and each country with enough applicants to show. Countries with fewer applicants are still counted in the CEE row.
| Where the founder is based | Had a grant |
|---|---|
| All of CEE | 16% |
| Baltics | 18% |
| Latvia | 17% |
| Estonia | 19% |
| Lithuania | 17% |
| Poland | 10% |
| Ukraine | 32% |
| Romania | 9% |
| Czechia | 16% |
| Bulgaria | 4% |
Had a grant: highest in Ukraine (32%), lowest in Bulgaria (4%).
What it means for you
- A grant is not a red flag. About one in seven CEE founders raising money already has one. What investors check is whether it tied you to conditions.
- Read the terms before you sign. Some grants restrict where you can move the company, who can own it or what the money can pay for. Know them before an investor asks.
- Use it to prove something. A grant that paid for a prototype or a first pilot strengthens the round; one that paid for running costs does not.
Also answers
How many startups in CEE have a grant before raising pre-seed?
16% of CEE founders raising pre-seed in 2026 so far had one.
How we measured it
- Source: applications founders sent to BADideas, enriched with publicly available information where applicable.
- Limits: these are CEE only and early-stage companies.
- On this page: A grant is non-dilutive money the founder names: a national or EU programme, an accelerator prize or a corporate grant. Founders who do not mention a grant are counted as having none.
- Updated: 27 September 2026.
BADideas.fund, "Do startups in CEE take grants before raising pre-seed?", updated 27 September 2026. https://badideas.fund/answers/grant-before-pre-seed-cee
Read next
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- How much are pre-seed startups in Central and Eastern Europe raising?
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