1.
The Startup‘s Quickstart Guide To:
Afghanistan
BELGIUM
Belgium

2.
The Startup‘s Quickstart Guide To:
Afghanistan
ABOUT
Here at The Startup Monthly, we’ve come across various guides here and there about
the startup communities in different countries. But, they’ve been inconsistent, and
not all countries are covered.
This guide is by no means meant to be complete and all encompassing. Consider it
a starting point if you’re an entrepreneur, investor or researcher.
We plan to update these guides at least annually and welcome any suggestions or
additions we should consider adding to the guide. I.e. startups, investors, community
resources, etc.
Please email any suggestions or questions to editor@thesocialmediamonthly.com.
Lead Researcher: Christian Arthur Last Updated: July, 2 2016
Belgium

3.
The Startup‘s Quickstart Guide To:
Afghanistan
INTRODUCTION
(1) (2)
Belgium

4.
The Startup‘s Quickstart Guide To:
Afghanistan
INTRODUCTION
• Government: Federal parliamentary democracy under
a constitutional monarchy 3
• GDP(PPP): $494.1 billion (per capita $43,600)
• Unemployment rate: $43,600
• Inflation rate: 0.6%
• Population below poverty line: 8.6%
• Main Industries: Engineering and metal products, motor vehicle assembly,
transportation equipment, scientific instruments, processed food and
beverages, chemicals, base metals, textiles, glass and petroleum.
Belgium

5.
The Startup‘s Quickstart Guide To:
Afghanistan
STARTUP SCENE
• “Red tape bureaucracy, two-party politics and an adverse perception
to risk taking” = structural resistance to innovation.4 Yet…
• In the past 5 years Belgium startup ecosystem has exponentially grown.
• In 2014 a then record of 525 startups were founded.5
• Geographic distribution:
• About 50% of startups in Flanders, Belgium’s northern (Dutch) half
• Where most of manufacturing is done.
• Top cities for entrepreneurship = Gent, Antwerp, and Leuven.
• About one quarter of startups are in Bussels, the capital:
• Site of NATO and EU Parliament.
• Burgeoning tech scene.6
Belgium

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The Startup‘s Quickstart Guide To:
Afghanistan
MOST PROMISING STARTUPS
Twoo
• Dating site for
pairing “young and
fun-loving people.”
• Ranked 1st on
startupranking.com7
• 1M Facebook follows
• 50M visits to website
per month7
DataCamp
• Online courses &
tutorials for
statistical language
“R”
• Ranked 3rd on
startupranking.com7
• Raised 2.4M in VC8
BeatSwitch
• Musical event and
festival mgmt.
software
• EU-startups.com
predicts BeatSwitch
will have successful
20168
• Raised 1.2M VC
Belgium

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The Startup‘s Quickstart Guide To:
Afghanistan
INVESTORS & INFLUENCERS
• Top angel investor10: Bart Becks; founded angel crowdsourcing
platform “angel.me”
• Top VC10: Simon Alexandre, GM of The Faktory, seed fund/accelerator.
• Best connected people in Belgium startup scene9:
• Michel Akkermans
• Investment company Pamida, ex-top man from Clear2Pay.
• Luc De Vos
• Finactum, Oxynade, CarsOnTheWeb.
• Jurgen Ingels
• SmartFin Capital, The Glue, ex-Clear2Pay.
Belgium

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The Startup‘s Quickstart Guide To:
Afghanistan
COVERAGE OF STARTUPS
• StartUps.be – A Belgium-based online magazine focusing
on startups.
• The Belgian Startup Ecosystem – Thorough GitHub article
• Sirris – Omar Mohout maps the Belgian startup scene
• EU-Startups – Major site blogging about European startups
Belgium

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The Startup‘s Quickstart Guide To:
Afghanistan
SUMMARY
Belgium
• Despite some structural resistance, the Belgium startup
scene is experiencing a time of serious growth. It’s already
got a strong network of investors, accelerators, and
incubators. Belgium is advantageously located in the “Blue
Banana” a geographical region with some of the highest
industry concentrations in the world.11 Additionally,
another asset of Belgium is that the country houses the
headquarters of NATO as well as the EU Parliament, putting
startups close to the political heart of Europe.

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The Startup‘s Quickstart Guide To:
Afghanistan
SOURCES
• Background Image:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Grand_Place_nort
hwest_-_Brussels.jpg
• (1)
• https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Belgium_(orthograp
hic_projection).svg
• (2)
• https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Belgi%C3%AB_-
_Belgique#/media/File:Be-map.png
Belgium

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The Startup‘s Quickstart Guide To:
Afghanistan
SOURCES
• (3)
• "The World Factbook: Belgium." Central Intelligence Agency. Central Intelligence
Agency, 20 June 2016. Web. 02 July 2016.
<https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/be.html>.
• (4)
• "The Best Start-ups in Belgium - The Word Magazine." The Word Magazine, 23
Apr. 2012. Web. 02 July 2016.
<http://www.thewordmagazine.com/neighbourhood-life/and-the-award-goes-
to/>.
• (5)
• Reback, Gedalyeh. "Beyond Terrorism in Belgium: Here's Their Booming Tech
Scene." GeekTime. N.p., 24 Nov. 2015. Web. 02 July 2016.
<http://www.geektime.com/2015/11/24/beyond-terrorism-in-belgium-heres-
their-booming-tech-scene-infographic/>.
Belgium

12.
The Startup‘s Quickstart Guide To:
Afghanistan
SOURCES
• (6)
• Raghib, Shamma. "Brussels Is A Buzzing Hub Of Entrepreneurship |
StartUs Magazine." StartUs Magazine. N.p., 11 Aug. 2015. Web. 02 July
2016. <http://magazine.startus.cc/brussels-is-also-a-buzzing-hub-of-
entrepreneurship/>.
• (7)
• "Top - Belgium." Startup Ranking. N.p., 2 July 2016. Web. 2 July 2016.
<http://www.startupranking.com/top/belgium>.
• (8)
• Ohr, Thomas. "6 Belgian Startups to Look out for in 2016." EUStartups.
N.p., 25 Jan. 2016. Web. 02 July 2016. <http://www.eu-
startups.com/2016/01/6-belgian-startups-to-look-out-for-in-2016/>.
Belgium

13.
The Startup‘s Quickstart Guide To:
Afghanistan
SOURCES
• (9)
• StartUp New. "The Belgian Startup Scene: Who's Pulling the
Strings?"Startups.be. N.p., 11 Apr. 2016. Web. 2 July 2016.
<http://startups.be/content/belgian-startup-scene-whos-pulling-strings>.
• (10)
• Startup News. "20 Top Investors Are Looking for the 50 Best Belgian Startups to
Invest In!" Homepage. N.p., 26 June 2016. Web. 02 July 2016.
<http://startups.be/content/20-top-investors-are-looking-50-best-belgian-
startups-invest>.
• (11)
• Mohout, Omar. "Belgium's 10 Most Innovative Startups You Ought to
Know."GeekTime. N.p., 26 Nov. 2015. Web. 03 July 2016.
<http://www.geektime.com/2015/11/26/belgiums-10-most-innovative-startups-
you-ought-to-know/>.
Belgium