Startup Nations Standards Report 2025 reveals a 70% implementation rate of startup-friendly policies across Europe

Europe Startup Nations Alliance (ESNA) has released the Startup Nations Standard Report 2025. Launched today, the report shows that Europe is progressing in building startup-friendly policies, highlighting progress in critical areas, namely in access to finance and attracting and retaining talent.

Lisbon, 4 February 2026 – The Startup Nations Standards report evaluates the implementation of the eight Startup Nations Standards offering a comprehensive benchmark for assessing challenges and successes across European countries. The report provides a detailed analysis of how each country is adopting best practices through startup friendly policies, creating a favourable environment for entrepreneurs, and supporting the scaling of their startup ecosystems.

This year’s edition reports an average implementation rate of 70%, a significant increase from 61% in 2024.   The progress reflects notable advances in Stock Options, Innovation in Regulation, and Social Inclusion and Diversity, crucial drivers of Europe’s startup competitiveness.

Structured around eight core Standards of Excellence, the report measures how each nation performs against these criteria, emphasizing key strengths and areas for improvement in:

1. Fast Startup Creation, Smooth Market Entry;

2. Attracting and Retaining Talent;

3. Stock Options;

4. Innovation in Regulation;

5. Innovation in Procurement;

6. Access to Finance;

7. Social inclusion, Diversity and protecting democratic Values;

8. Digital First.

Key highlights from the report include:

• Fast Startup Creation, Smooth Market Entry. Europe has been simplifying and accelerating the process of setting up a business, reaching a 77% implementation rate. Documents emitted by a foreign entity are accepted in 20 of the surveyed countries. As for the business setup, it can be carried out in one day and for less than €100 in five countries.

• Access to Finance stands among the best-performing standards with its 77% implementation level and seven countries achieving full implementation (100%). All surveyed countries have public grants, loans and other non-equity instruments to foster startup financing.

• Digital First is gaining traction across Europe, with 21 countries offering a variety of administrative processes online and 23 implementing national digitalization strategies, reaching an average implementation level of 75%.

• Social Inclusion & Diversity opportunities are enhanced with an average of 73% implementation rate across the surveyed countries, with seven countries performing at 100% implementation rate. It is the standard with the steepest progression.

The report was unveiled today at a streaming event presented by Sarah Sommersguter. The initiative counted with the participation of ESNA Members from Belgium, represented by Eléonore Simonet, Minister of the Middle Class, Self-Employed and SMEs; Portugal, represented by João Rui Ferreira, Secretary of State for Economy; Slovenia, represented by Matevž Frangež, State Secretary at the Ministry of the Economy, Tourism and Sport; France, represented by Jérôme Gazzano, Deputy Director of Innovation at the General Directorate for Companies at the Ministry of Economic and Finance; and Spain, represented by Alberto Gago, Managing Director, at Spanish Agency for the Supervision of Artificial Intelligence and Fernando Escobar, Deputy Director General for Digital Citizenship, Talent and Entrepreneurship and the SNS 2025 Steering Committee members Ramón Compañó, Team Leader of the Startup & Scaleups and Senior Expert at European Commission’s Joint Research Centre and Stefano Bonini, Associate Professor at Bocconi University and Stevens Institute of Technology.  

ESNA’s Executive Director, Arthur Jordão, stated: “The 2025 Startup Nations Standards Report marks another important milestone in ESNA’s mission. In the current global context, supporting startups to scale in Europe is essential to safeguarding the Union’s technological leadership and strategic autonomy. The report shows encouraging progress in how countries are implementing the Startup Nations Standards, with growing alignment between political ambition and concrete policy measures on the ground. Beyond capturing where Europe stands today, it provides policymakers with a practical tool to understand what works, identify remaining gaps and design targeted reforms that can accelerate impact.”

Full Startup Nations Standards Report 2025 and Digital Scoreboard available here: Standards | ESNA

Streaming event available here:  https://vimeo.com/event/5696096