A new report by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) shows that one of the missing links is finance. Despite intellectual property (IP) being central to modern business value, it remains underused as a basis for securing funding, limiting the ability of innovative firms to scale and compete internationally.

The study, IP-backed finance in Europe, highlights a structural gap between Europe’s strong innovation capacity and its financial system. While IP-intensive industries generate around 48% of EU GDP and 31% of employment, many companies, particularly SMEs and start-ups, struggle to leverage their IP assets to access finance. As a result, some high-potential firms relocate outside the EU in search of better funding conditions.

A market with significant untapped potential

The report estimates that the EU SME credit gap reaches up to €365 billion annually, with €70 - 150 billion linked to IP-rich firms. With the right framework, IP-backed finance could mobilise €30 - 120 billion per year, generating up to €750 billion in GDP impact over a decade.

However, IP remains largely invisible in financial decision-making. Only 13% of firms owning IP rights have attempted to use them to obtain financing, and most have never carried out a professional valuation.

Unlocking IP-backed finance

The report identifies key barriers, including difficulties in valuing IP, fragmented legal frameworks and weak secondary markets. To address these challenges, it sets out five priorities: making IP visible, assigning credible value, enabling lending, building data, and reinforcing coordination.

By positioning intellectual property as a financial asset, not just a legal tool, the EUIPO report wants to contribute to the broader debate on how to strengthen Europe’s competitiveness and ensure that innovation created in Europe is also developed and scaled within it.