EIC seeks contractor to deliver a new Global Business Expansion Programme

The European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency has opened a call for tenders under procedure identifier EISMEA/2025/OP/0006. The procurement will establish the EIC Global Business Expansion Programme to support EIC-funded companies moving into markets outside the EU. The focus is on entry and scale-up in the Americas and across Asia and the Pacific. The programme is framed as a follow-on to earlier EIC soft-landing activities and is intended to help beneficiaries internationalise without relocating their European base.

Procurement at a glance

What the contractor must deliver

The tender packages five service lines aimed at practical internationalisation support. Delivery is expected through a mix of local partners, online learning, and direct business development activities.

Positioning within the EU support landscape

The EIC Global Business Expansion Programme sits alongside existing EU measures such as Business Acceleration Services, National Contact Points networks, the Enterprise Europe Network, and national trade and investment agencies. The EIC programme is narrower in scope because it targets only companies already funded by the EIC. That focus can create a coherent pipeline and allow more tailored deep tech support. It can also lead to fragmentation if activities duplicate or run parallel to existing national export services. Strong coordination with Member State agencies and with EU-level networks will likely determine how efficiently the relatively modest budget is used.

What EISMEA is buying and from whom

EISMEA is procuring an end-to-end internationalisation service for a defined cohort of EIC-backed companies. The winning contractor is expected to combine local market partners in the Americas and in Asia and the Pacific with centrally coordinated training and deal-making. Delivery will require credible networks in target ecosystems, repeatable cohort operations and the ability to generate investor and buyer pipelines. Given the cross-regional remit and budget, bidders will likely form consortia to combine geographic coverage with deep tech sector focus.

Geographic focus and notable omissions

The tender explicitly targets the Americas and the Asia and Pacific regions. Other major emerging markets are not mentioned in the call text, for example markets in Africa or the Middle East. This does not rule them out for future actions, but it signals a clear prioritisation for this contract.

Beneficiaries and constraints

Only EIC-funded companies are eligible to benefit from the services under this contract. Beneficiaries are expected to keep core operations in the EU, which aligns with the EIC mandate to scale European deep tech while competing globally. This condition also reflects ongoing EU policy emphasis on retaining high value activities and talent within the Union. The trade-off is that promising non-EIC firms and later-stage scaleups supported by other EU or national instruments will not be served by this specific programme.

Budget realism and likely reach

At an estimated €2.3 million over up to three years, the contract is modest compared with the multi-annual EIC budgets and with the cost of serious market entry in the United States or advanced Asian economies. Effective delivery will require tight prioritisation of destinations, careful cohort sizing and disciplined selection of companies that are already close to market fit. Without that focus the risk is thinly spread activities that raise awareness but struggle to convert into signed customers or co-investments.

Execution risks and quality signals to watch

The programme depends on the depth of local partner networks and the quality of curated matchmaking. Key risks include duplicating what companies can already obtain from national trade agencies, weak sector fit in generalist hubs, and overpromising on investor access. Quality indicators to track after award will include the credibility of local partners, the ratio of qualified meetings to total meetings, conversion from introductions to pilots or contracts, and the transparency of company selection criteria for participation in each mission.

Process, compliance and governance notes

Bidding, clarifications and notifications run through the EU Funding and Tenders Portal. The open procedure and best price quality ratio should ensure competition on both delivery quality and cost. As with all EU procurement, contractors and beneficiaries are subject to audit and potential scrutiny by bodies such as the European Court of Auditors and the European Anti-Fraud Office. EISMEA-managed actions apply EU data protection rules. Applicants and contractors should expect standard requirements on data minimisation, secure handling and limited retention of personal data tied to programme delivery.

What happens next

Interested consortia should obtain the full tender documents and evaluation criteria from the EU Funding and Tenders Portal and plan for multi-country delivery with measurable client acquisition outcomes. If awarded and launched, meaningful impact will hinge on selecting companies with strong market hypotheses, orchestrating credible buyer and investor pipelines in a few priority hubs, and publishing clear performance data beyond press statements. Given the limited envelope, the programme should be judged on depth of outcomes in selected markets rather than broad activity counts.