Future 100 Slovenia initiative identifies high-growth companies for global competition

Europe’s drive to boost its global competitiveness received a significant test with the unveiling of the Future 100 Slovenia initiative, identifying 100 high-growth Slovenian companies with the potential to become global champions. This marks a pivotal moment as the EU prepares to mobilize up to €80 billion in scale-up investment through the European Investment Bank’s ETC 2.0 program.

The Future 100 Slovenia initiative, launched at the Future 500 Forum in Bled, Slovenia, aims to address a critical question: can Europe successfully identify and support its most promising companies early enough to compete on the global stage? The forum, titled “Powering Europe's Scale-Up Engine: From Selection to Acceleration,” brought together a host of high-profile figures, including Slovenian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy, Labor and Sport, Dr. Anže Logar, and EU Commissioner for Enlargement, Marta Kos.

“Europe is beginning to mobilize the capital it needs, but simply making €80 billion available will not suffice,” stated Stjepan Orešković, founder of the Future 500 Initiative. “We need to identify our future champions earlier and ensure they have the necessary capital, markets, and expertise to compete globally. Our model is designed to select, connect, and support these companies.”

The Future 500 methodology, developed by an international research team at IEDC – Bled School of Management in collaboration with Harvard, Oxford, the University of Edinburgh, and ESMT Berlin, has been applied in full for the first time in Slovenia. The initiative plans to use this pilot to create a blueprint for deploying the model across Europe.

The Future 500 Forum attracted key stakeholders, including the Prime Minister of Croatia, Andrej Plenković, and representatives from the European Investment Bank, European Investment Fund, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Nasdaq, and Google DeepMind. The event underscored the growing importance of fostering European entrepreneurship and innovation.

“Europe must improve how it identifies potential winners and backs them,” emphasized Orešković. “We want to work with each company on its growth strategy and connect it with the right people and institutions. This is crucial for ensuring that Europe’s future champions can thrive on the global stage.”

For more information, visit the Future 500 Initiative’s website at future500initiative.com.