hungarian business Angel network
about us
Hungarian Business Angel Network (HUNBAN) – the official angel investor association of Hungary – was incorporated in April 2017. Its aim is to welcome and unite all business angels who are interested in investment opportunities not only on a local, but a regional level as well. The network’s mission is to integrate Hungary into the international circulation of business angels and truly represent both the companies and the investors’ interests.
Who are business angels?
Angel investors are those individuals who help and invest in early-stage businesses: not just with financial investment, but with professional support and network.
Our activities
The association organizes a community of active Angel investors of Hungary and Central and Eastern Europe and individuals or organizations associated with the business angel community.Our founders had an active role prior to the formal establishment of the Association usually on a pro bono basis.The purpose of the association is to increase the efficiency of the Hungarian business angel market, the quantitative and qualitative development of startup investments, and the development of the startup ecosystem in the region.We have regular professional forums to assure the exchange of views between members: They can share experiences, knowledge and good practice. We work on connecting to foreign angel investors in order to build up a wide network and ensure cross-border deals.HUNBAN has more than 350 subscribers. Join us!
Board Members
Péter Csillag
President
president@hunban.euTechnology business executive
Co-founder and ex-CEO of StarschemaPeter is a technology business building and scaling veteran. For some years he had worked as a data technology expert at large multinational enterprises, then founded Starschema, the most successful Hungarian data technology service provider serving Fortune500 clients globally. As long-time bootstrapping CEO Peter has experience in many areas: solving technical problems, building tech and non-tech teams, operating HR, recruitment, finances, managing projects, and products, setting up and scaling support services, company operations, legal and administrative processes, hunting, and farming clients, building sales organizations, B2B marketing, creating growth strategy, financial planning, VC and M&A deals both on sell and buy-side, legal disputes, incorporations, and many more. Peter has a good overview of what founders need to grow a global tech business and has the attitude to help and mentor them to reach their potentials.
As a business angel, Peter primarily focuses on B2B technology startups, but he is fine to explore outstanding opportunities from other domains as well.
Current investment(s): VIZZU, VirtDB, Redmenta, Sharee, Ecohills
Dénes Csiszár
Board member
denes.csiszar@value-it.huEarly stage startup advisor
Impact architectDénes is an early-stage startup enthusiast, with a mission to help launching more and more impactful organisations. He’s active in the ecosystem since 2008, arriving from the corporate technology and business development world. He co-founded several startups himself and raised capital in several rounds, after which he even ran a startup incubator for a while. He mentored, taught and coached over 150 early-stage startups so far, from validation to business planning, from market sizing to fundraising. Dénes is the project leader of the Entrepreneurship track within the full-time MBA program at the Corvinus University. He co-founded eSzínház, an online service which streams plays from Hungarian theatres, supporting them to survive during and after the pandemic. He currently runs an impact agency, helping early-stage impact startups and NGOs with technology- and business services at Liber Primus.
full members
Associate members
Address: Hungary, 1011 Budapest, Hunyadi János út 20.
E-mail: info@hunban.eu
for startups
HUNBAN is interested in early-stage companies who are looking for investment for their financial and strategic growth. By filling out the application form the company should express their uniqueness and potential for great return on investment.Do not hesitate to apply if your company fits into the following criteria:
Located in the European Union
Expected fund is between €50k and €500k
A strong business plan is a must have
Apply here!
Join us!
Are you a (future) business angel?
Check if you meet the criteria of the Hungarian Business Angel Network members.
You already made your own fortune. Now you would like to give back to the society through supporting young entrepreneurs with innovational products/ideas.
You would like to help these projects not only financially but with your EXPERTISE, EXPERIENCE, and NETWORK.
You plan to start it within the next two years.
Satisfied the requirements?
Congratulations! You are a great Business Angel material!
Advantages of joining us
Our members have access to high-quality investments within Hungary and the Central and Eastern European region. We are committed to building up a network of business angels in order to collaborate on deals, share experience and motivation.
Knowing about the greatest projects let us give our members the feeling of a great return on their investment.
We organize regular conferences, forums and showcases of potential projects.
The annual membership fee is used for the general operations of the association. The membership fee is VAT-free.
To start the application process, please fill out this application form, and we will contact you soon.
NEWS
For the latest news please check out our LinkedIn page
and subscribe to our mailing list!
Addressing the investment gap: A new project funded by the European Union has been launched, aimed at building a robust early-stage investment pipeline in Central and Eastern Europe
Healthy Investment Central Eastern Europe (HICEE) aims to boost innovations in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), where start-ups receive only a third of the European average for VC investments.
The project consortium is spearheaded by EIT Health, Europe's leading network of healthcare innovators, and a part of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), a body of the European Union. The project partners represent business acceleration service providers and investor networks from Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia, as well as innovation hubs from Belgium and the Netherlands. The two-year initiative is strategically implemented under Horizon Europe, a flagship EU research and innovation programme.The CEE region accounted for only 3.2% of Europe's total venture capital investment in 2021. The start-ups receiving support in this region received an average venture capital investment of €1.2 million, representing a third of the European average of €3.8 million. Attracting capital is one of the biggest challenges in developing European regions, known as modest and moderate innovation ecosystems, according to the European Innovation Scoreboard. The reasons include both fewer venture targets and a low number of investors, as well as an unwillingness to invest capital across borders.
“Research indicates that the investment gap in CEE is due to a lack of critical mass in both projects and investors. HICEE addresses this by focusing on supporting Tech Transfer Offices, cultivating knowledge-sharing through capacity building, and by building suitable investor infrastructure for early-stage ventures. The programme recognises the specific challenges faced by health and life science start-ups and aims to equip stakeholders with the knowledge needed for successful market translation”, explains Magda Krakowiak, Director of the EIT Health Accelerator.Attracting €3M in capital with cross-border co-investments
The aim of the HICEE project is to create sustainable early-stage investment ecosystems, attract local and international investors, provide de-risking support, and actively share successful outcomes to foster continuous investor engagement. It will run its first activities in countries where partners are based, namely Poland, Hungary, Slovakia and Slovenia. However, its outreach and training opportunities will extend to other modest and moderate European regions. The programme is expected to equip at least 10 start-up support organisations, such as Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs), with new methodologies. It also aims to train an additional 30 trainers who have the potential to impact up to 150 innovation projects/start-up ventures annually. Other expected outcomes include vetting 25 health start-ups for advanced investment readiness in international markets and attracting millions in cross-border co-investments. Digital investment handbooks and a white paper on investment policies, published as a part of the project’s commitment to knowledge-sharing, will serve as invaluable guides for investors, contributing to a more informed and empowered investment community.Targeting TTOs, universities, investors, and innovators, HICEE emphasises collaboration for sustained innovation in the region. The programme seeks to directly engage with the European Investment Fund, regional and national innovation agencies, and European policymakers to create an environment fostering long-term growth and forging living and lasting connections between innovation players in the region and beyond.HICEE consortium partners
Project consortium consists of 10 partners from 7 European countries. This includes EIT Health (DE) as a coordinator, its affiliated entity EIT Health SI (DE) and the primary beneficiaries, namely EIT Health InnoStars (DE), Civitta (SK), flanders.healthTech (BE), Cobinangels (PL), Ljubljanski univerzitetni incubator (SI), TU Delft (NL), Crowdverry (SK), Magyar Üzleti Angyal Egyesület (HU).Additionally, the initiative will be drawing on the expertise of external stakeholders and advisory group
Members, i.e. KU Leuven (BE), Danube Angels (AT). Hungarian Export Promotion Agency Nonprofit, Inc. (HU), Business Angels Europe BAE (BE), Karolinska Institutet Innovations AB KII (SE), European Investment Fund EIF (LU), Invest Europe IE (BE), Arima d.o.o / Business Angels of Slovenia (SI).
Most of the HICEE consortium partners are already involved in activities closely linked to the project's scope in their regions. Civitta runs an accelerator programme. Additionally, Civitta, TU Delft, Ljubljanski univerzitetni incubator and InnoStars have a very strong track record of collaborative joint programmes like the DRIVE programme or the RIS Jumpstarter programme. EIT Health and the EIF already have a trusted working relationship and provide de-risked deal-flow to associated European investors through joint development of the Venture Center of Excellence (VCoE), a public-private co-investment programme connected to the €150 million Sustainable Development Umbrella Fund (SDUF).There are also untapped opportunities in the health-tech field of Hungary, and the Hungarian Business Angel Network (HunBAN) aims to help filling this investment gap through the HICEE project. We will discover startups operating in the health-tech sector and connect them with ecosystem players and business angels. We will also encourage and help the local early stage investors to broaden their portfolio and invest in health-tech startups. It is also an important objective to increase cross-border co-investments in the CEE region through collaboration with other consortium members and further market players. In the next 2 years we are going to work on expanding the horizon and increasing the critical mass of projects and investors in the health-tech sector.