Eddy Van Gelder

Eddy Van Gelder (born 1952) graduated in 1973 with a degree in economic sciences from the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB). Before entering public finance, he worked at Brouwerij Haelterman and at the training institute (Instituut voor Kadervorming) of the Flemish liberal party PVV, later serving as director of that party's study service.

In 1984 — the year the Brussels-Capital Region created the vehicle — Van Gelder became general director of the GIMB (Gewestelijke Investeringsmaatschappij voor Brussel, in French SRIB, today finance&invest.brussels). He ran the region's investment company for more than three decades, until his retirement on 1 March 2017. Under his leadership GIMB grew into the Brussels region's principal instrument for putting equity and quasi-equity into unlisted local companies, from startups through to established SMEs and scale-ups. (A 2017 BRUZZ report noted that four GIMB directors, Van Gelder among them, collectively earned close to €1 million a year, reflecting the scale of the group he led.)

Van Gelder is also a well-known figure in Brussels academic and civic life. He sat on the VUB board from 1989 to 1994 and returned as chairman of the university's Board of Directors from 2002/2003 until September 2020 — an 18-year tenure spanning rectors Ben Van Camp, Paul De Knop and Caroline Pauwels, praised on his departure for advancing the university's "innovation, professionalization and internationalization." Alongside these roles he chaired Technopool Brussel and held leadership positions in the Vlaamse Management Associatie, the Belgian Venturing Association and the Kaaitheater.

Note: the contact details above are the general GIMB / finance&invest.brussels line; Van Gelder himself has been retired from the firm since 2017, so any live investment activity now runs through the current finance&invest.brussels team.

• Mandate-driven, not opportunistic: GIMB/finance&invest.brussels exists to strengthen the Brussels regional economy — its core purpose is to invest equity in *unlisted Brussels-based companies*, so a Brussels footprint (registered office, jobs, activity in the region) is effectively a precondition.
• Full-lifecycle investor: backs seed and early-stage ventures as well as growth, expansion and later-stage SMEs; the group runs dedicated vehicles such as Brustart for young/seed-stage companies.
• Instruments: equity and quasi-equity (capital, convertible loans, co-investment) in private companies rather than pure grants — it takes minority stakes and co-invests alongside other funds.
• Sector-agnostic with clear tilts: historically broad (industry, services, retail), with growing weight in technology, SaaS, healthcare/biotech, fintech, civic tech and impact/sustainability.
• Co-investor mentality: routinely partners with other Belgian funds (e.g. SFPIM, Qbic Fund) rather than leading alone — attractive for founders assembling a syndicate.