Programm für Internationalisierung - Förderung der Netzwerkbildung

Applications may be submitted by business-related institutions with their own legal personality and internationally orientated networks with economic objectives and a registered office or place of business in the Federal State of Berlin.

• Networking projects in the region and beyond which specifically help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Berlin to expand and overcome internationalisation barriers and which support the establishment and development of sustainable international co-operation projects.
• Berlin-based companies are supported in networking with each other and with academia. The structural competitive disadvantages facing companies in Berlin are to be compensated for by initiating supra-regional and cross-border co-operation processes and by integrating regional value chains into international production processes.
• In line with the guiding principle of business development in Berlin, priority will be given to measures that are part of the clusters defined within the framework of the joint Berlin-Brandenburg innovation strategy. The clusters are of particular importance for structural change in Berlin. The projects should enable the establishment of strategic partnerships in order to close gaps in regional value chains and exploit potential in the sense of cross-innovation. On the whole, the position of the Federal State of Berlin as a location for business and innovation as well as that of its companies is to be improved. The network projects must therefore especially serve the economic interests of the Federal State of Berlin.

• Non-repayable, earmarked grant by way of partial financing.
• Grants total up to 80% of the expenditure eligible for support. The funding amount is determined for each individual case.

• The project should have a term of between 1 and 3 years.
• No support is available if other public grants have been received for the same funding purpose (prohibition on cumulation).

The application is submitted within the framework of a two-stage procedure (1. request for funding and 2. application for funding).

• First of all, you must submit a request for funding.
• In the event of a positive preliminary examination by IBB, your request for funding will be forwarded to the senate administration responsible for economic affairs which will determine if your project serves the interest of the Federal State.
• After confirmation of the federal state’s general interest in the project idea, you can submit the application for funding.
• Please submit your application to Investitionsbank Berlin no later than six weeks before the scheduled commencement of the measure.
• In order to apply, submit the completed application form along with the supporting documents. You can apply online using the application process provided on IBB’s customer portal. Alternatively, you can download your completed application form and send this by post or submit it in person.

Please contact us at the earliest possible date. Our Customer Centre will be pleased to answer detailed questions regarding the programme and assist you with your application.

Please note: Applications are accepted in German only.

Projects funded under this support programme can make a direct or indirect positive contribution to the following Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs):

• 8 - Decent work and economic growth
• 9 - Industry, innovation and infrastructure

IBB generally excludes certain controversial business practices from funding or conducts case-by-case assessments within controversial business sectors.

You can find more detailed information on the exclusion criteria in our sustainability guidelines .

Further information on the IBB Group’s SDGs can be found at:

Our contribution to the SDGs – IBB Group

At the same time, we are aware that our funding activities may also have unintended negative impacts on individual SDGs. These aspects are not covered in full on this page. However, we are giving careful consideration to potential conflicts of interest and are working to minimise any negative effects as far as possible.