US largest source of venture capital in Portugal
The US is the third largest foreign investor in Portugal and the largest source of venture capital in the country a conference heard on Wednesday.
Addressing the ‘Boom ‘Data-to-Doorstep in Portugal – Data Centres, Submarine Cables and Logistics as a New Transatlantic Real Estate’, organised by AmCham Portugal, Anna Margolis, Economic Unit Chief of the US Mission Portugal, confirmed that the US represented about 22% of all VC capital and 11% of total investment capital worth around US$550.
Anna Margolis explained that US investors were attracted to Portugal because of its geography, saying “We’re the neighbour, we’re the Atlantic neighbours, we share the ocean as our border. I would say 75% of trans-Atlantic traffic goes through Portugal, through the subsea cables that connect us.”
Stability was another factor. “Despite all the elections and all the government back and forths, Portugal is one of the most stable countries”.
Alignment on policy priorities, talent, phenomenal research institutions, an educated and multilingual workforce, and affordability were other key factors.
“People speak English, people are open to working with foreigners. It’s unprecedented. It’s, I think, one of the best destinations for talent in Europe. I would say, of course, affordable energy prices, can’t be ignored either”, she added.
Anna said that there was an “excitement” about Portugal as an innovation hub. “This is where people and ideas come together.”
This could be seen in the partnerships between academic institutions, university partnership programmes, and business exchanges which was not just facilitated by the US Embassy in Portugal, but was happening independently too.
Anna highlighted the recent Amazon Web Services announcement that it would be establishing its Southern Cloud and Local Zone in Portugal.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) announced the launch of its European Sovereign Cloud in Portugal in early 2026, featuring new “Sovereign Local Zones”.
This infrastructure aims to provide low-latency cloud services while meeting strict data residency requirements for European customers, alongside existing AWS Direct Connect locations in Lisbon.
“It’s going to contribute up to 1% of Portuguese GDP and17,000 jobs. AWS, I imagine, in making that decision, have some really good investment opportunities here. They recognise the talent, and that Portugal is taking away the crown for testing new technologies”, she said.
Of course, Start Campus was another focus of excitement since Microsoft had announced a US$10Bn investment. “There’s so much excitement here and our companies see it.”
“I think to us, the possibilities seem endless. We can continue to collaborate on inventing new technologies. We can expand data centers, we can lay more cables to further connect our continents. And so there is just so much that can be done.”, added Anna Margolis.
However, on security issues, particularly key infrastructure such as ports, energy, and submarine cables, Portugal “really needs to get on board and implement a robust investment screening mechanism. Because that’s how you protect your ports, that’s how you protect your energy infrastructure”, she advised.
“That’s how you protect the very subsea cables that connect all of us. And then, of course, you need to do more on national security requirements in your tenders when you are selecting custom screening and port screening equipment as you start developing.
Portugal, she said, had a really ambitious ports programme to develop its ports, railways, and bridges.
And asked, “well, who is supplying all of those components and services? Who is supplying the hardware? Those need to be trusted vendors to keep the country safe, and so there needs to be new legislation in place to ensure that.”
Source: Essential Business; Credits: AmCham Portugal
