Final day of US working visit: launch of Benelux Catalyst and Luxembourg Space Finance event

The final day of the working visit to the United States, chaired by H.R.H. the Hereditary Grand Duke and co-chaired by the Minister of Health Paulette Lenert and Minister of the Economy Franz Fayot, included the launch of a start-up programme and an event on space financing in New York.

  1. ©LTIONY/A.Meadows du Benelux Catalyst

    (fr. l. to r.) Valérie Van den Keybus, co-managing director de BelCham ; Toon Lambrechts, Co-founder of MyCellHub, selected Belgian start-up; Rob Napoli, responsible for the program and the platform of BelCham

    (fr. l. to r.) Valérie Van den Keybus, co-managing director de BelCham ; Toon Lambrechts, Co-founder of MyCellHub, selected Belgian start-up; Rob Napoli, responsible for the program and the platform of BelCham

  2. ©LTIONY/A.Meadows du Benelux Catalyst

    (fr. l. to r.) Paul Steinmetz, Executive Director LTIO New York ; Franz Fayot, Minister of the Economy; Laurent Frédérickx, Belgian Deputy Consul General in New York ; n.c. ; Inge Bruynooghe, CEO, Ergotric

    (fr. l. to r.) Paul Steinmetz, Executive Director LTIO New York ; Franz Fayot, Minister of the Economy; Laurent Frédérickx, Belgian Deputy Consul General in New York ; n.c. ; Inge Bruynooghe, CEO, Ergotric

  3. ©LTIONY/A.Meadows du Benelux Catalyst

    Benelux Catalyst launch breakfast

    Benelux Catalyst launch breakfast

  4. ©LTIONY/A.Meadows du Benelux Catalyst

    (fr. l. to r.) Valérie Van den Keybus, Co-Managing Director at BelCham; H.R.H. The Hereditary Grand Duke; Sasha Baillie, CEO of Luxinnovation

    (fr. l. to r.) Valérie Van den Keybus, Co-Managing Director at BelCham; H.R.H. The Hereditary Grand Duke; Sasha Baillie, CEO of Luxinnovation

  5. ©LTIONY/A.Meadows du Benelux Catalyst

    (fr. l. to r.) Franz Fayot, Minister of the Economy; Caner Dolas, Co-founder of Gamma AR

    (fr. l. to r.) Franz Fayot, Minister of the Economy; Caner Dolas, Co-founder of Gamma AR

  6. ©Maison du Grand-Duc

    (fr. l. to r.) Franz Fayot, Minister of the Economy; H.R.H. The Hereditary Grand Duke

    (fr. l. to r.) Franz Fayot, Minister of the Economy; H.R.H. The Hereditary Grand Duke

  7. ©Maison du Grand-Duc

    (fr. l. to r.) H.R.H. The Hereditary Grand Duke ; Amina Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, Chair of the United Nations Sustainable Development Group; Franz Fayot, Minister of the Economy

    (fr. l. to r.) H.R.H. The Hereditary Grand Duke ; Amina Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, Chair of the United Nations Sustainable Development Group; Franz Fayot, Minister of the Economy

  8. ©LSA/N.Chan

    (fr. l. to r.) Franz Fayot, Minister of the Economy; H.R.H. The Hereditary Grand Duke ; Mathias Link, Mathias Link, Director of International Affairs and Space Resources of The Luxembourg Space Agency (LSA)

    (fr. l. to r.) Franz Fayot, Minister of the Economy; H.R.H. The Hereditary Grand Duke ; Mathias Link, Mathias Link, Director of International Affairs and Space Resources of The Luxembourg Space Agency (LSA)

  9. ©LSA/N.Chan

    Speech by H.R.H. the Hereditary Grand Duke

    Speech by H.R.H. the Hereditary Grand Duke

  10. ©LSA/N.Chan

    Group photo

    Group photo

  11. ©LSA/N.Chan

    Franz Fayot, Minister of the Economy

    Franz Fayot, Minister of the Economy

On 10 November, H.R.H the Hereditary Grand Duke and the Minister of the Economy attended a breakfast for the official launch of the Benelux Catalyst start-up acceleration programme, organised in partnership with the Belgian-American Chamber of Commerce in New York BelCham.

Benelux Catalyst is a US-focused internationalisation programme that allows six start-ups (one from Luxembourg - Gamma AR, two from Belgium and three from the Netherlands) to discover the New York ecosystem each year, so that they can start to make business contacts and see if their product is suitable for the US market. For a fortnight, the selected start-ups follow an intense programme in New York consisting of workshops, courses and individual sessions on topics such as business development, user interface, fundraising and pitching with local experts, mentors and peers.

H.R.H the Hereditary Grand Duke and Franz Fayot, in his capacity as Minister for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Affairs, then visited the United Nations headquarters where they met with Amina Mohammed, UN Deputy Secretary-General and Chair of the UN Sustainable Development Group.

The day continued with the Luxembourg Space Finance event 2022, organised by the Luxembourg Space Agency to celebrate the latest achievements and progress of the Luxembourg space ecosystem. After opening speeches by H.R.H. the Hereditary Grand Duke and the Minister of the Economy, a round table discussion brought together representatives from Orbital Ventures, Redwire, RRE Ventures and Kleos Space to discuss and identify the investment gaps and challenges faced by companies and investors. The event also aimed to strengthen the network and cooperation in this sector between Luxembourg and the wider European Union on the one hand and the United States on the other. It brought together nearly 200 people.

The Minister of Health Paulette Lenert travelled to Washington by train for a meeting with Kaiser Permanente to discuss the integration of new technologies to improve patient care, through a holistic view of medicine and data analysis.

The visit ended with a reception at Luxembourg House, where the Luxembourg Trade and Investment Office and the Consulate General of Luxembourg in New York are located.

Press release by the Ministry of the Economy and the Ministry of Health

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