Bulgaria has a chance to receive the second and third payments under the Recovery and Resilience Plan by the end of the year

Payments under the Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP) have doubled in the last three to four months. This was announced by Deputy Prime Minister Tomislav Donchev on April 29 during his participation in "Investor Day"—a forum organised by the Bulgarian Stock Exchange.

Donchev expressed optimism not only about the realisation of delayed tranches but also about the fulfillment of the remaining commitments under the RRP. He emphasised that the major challenge remains the implementation of investments within the limited timeframe until the summer of 2026.

“I have every reason to be optimistic—not because I am naïve, but based on the negotiations we have held with the European Commission over the past two months, as well as the mobilisation efforts undertaken by the state. We have seen nearly a doubling of payments under the RRP in the past three to four months, which is a positive sign that we are on the right track,” Donchev stated.

He believes there is a strong likelihood that both the second and third tranches of payments will be received within this year.

“The main challenge is not the pace of payment disbursements; the real challenge is the execution of the investments. The deadline is August 2026, which means we have just over a year left to complete all planned investments. Many of our projects have not even reached the stage of public procurement announcements,” Donchev added.

Donchev and Finance Minister Temenuzhka Petkova both took part in the "Investor Day" forum - organised by the stock exchange. During the event, Minister Petkova highlighted the potential of the capital market.

“For us, the development of the capital market is a priority, and we are actively involved in this process. The competitiveness of the EU economy is another key issue. This unquestionably involves reducing administrative burdens—especially for SMEs—and simplifying the regulatory framework. At the same time, this simplification must not come at the expense of investor protection and security,” said Petkova.

The new Chair of the Financial Supervision Commission, Vasil Golemanski, echoed concerns about excessive regulation.

“We must be careful not to cross the line into overregulation. We need to take a sensible approach, as excessive regulatory pressure and administrative burden could destroy emerging businesses or harm existing ones to some extent,” Golemanski stated.

The aim of "Investor Day" was explained by the CEO of the Bulgarian Stock Exchange.

“‘Investor Day’ is a platform that facilitates meetings between companies seeking capital—not only those listed on the stock exchange but also private companies—and potential investors,” said Manyu Moravenov.

The forum was attended by both public and private companies with a combined market capitalisation of around BGN 10 billion, along with investors managing assets exceeding BGN 20 billion.