Verena Pausder, Chairwoman of the Startup Association, has clear words on the European elections: More Europe is necessary, but without additional bureaucracy. She described the high proportion of votes in favour of populist parties as absolutely terrifying: ‘This shows the destructive forces acting on our democracies. She also emphasised the importance of a strong capital market union for start-ups and warned against losing technological ground to the USA and China.
“The European elections are crucial in determining the direction of the European Union for the next five years. I am therefore very pleased about the high turnout for a European election. The high proportion of votes in favour of populist parties is absolutely terrifying and shows the destructive forces that are affecting our democracies. There are no supposedly easy solutions in our world. A fragmented continent would sink into insignificance – that is why it is clear to me that we need more Europe, not less”, explained Verena Pausder, Chairwoman of the Startup Association, today on the occasion of the European elections.
However, Pausder emphasised that more Europe should not necessarily mean more regulations and bureaucracy. Rather, it should be about setting the framework for innovation and growth in a smart way. The focus should be on strengthening competitiveness.
For start-ups and scale-ups, it is important that the Capital Markets Union is driven forward in the coming months, said Pausder. She emphasised that only with attractive exit channels and a dynamic capital market would it be possible to remain a strong startup location in the long term.
Pausder went on to say that an open, liquid capital market would increase the EU’s attractiveness as a financial centre, improve growth potential and create more profitable investment opportunities. She warned that without greater investment in innovation, Europe would lose touch with the USA and China in terms of technology and its growth prospects would be jeopardised.
About the Startup Association:
The Startup Association has almost 1,200 members and was founded in Berlin in September 2012. The association sees itself as the representative and voice of startups in Germany: it represents the interests, viewpoints and concerns of startup companies vis-à-vis legislation, administration and the public. It promotes innovative entrepreneurship and aims to promote the startup mentality in society. The association sees itself as a network for startups in Germany.
