With respect, you may have 30 years in tech but clearly not a single day in tech in Portugal. I have been active in 3 tech ecosystems and can tell you that they are completely different from each other. I actually invested in multiple Portuguese startups (and have been offered board positions repeatedly which I just don’t have time to take), after investing in UK startups, have been mentoring them and have been talking to some of the people writing the laws, so I speak from a position of deep familiarity with the ecosystem.
Sure - there are unicorns in Portugal where 100K won’t get you anywhere but there is also a large number of early stage startups that are starving for cash. The average salary is 1,500 Euros a month. You can get a decent developer for 40-50K a year and a junior for 25K. 100K is a LOT of money in Portugal and there is almost no early stage capital (there is, weirdly, a lot of late stage capital due to another tax benefit).
In addition, there is severe lack of expertise and network with the US. For early stage startups in Portugal, 100K is A LOT and a board member with added value is a desirable thing. No-one intends to stock-pile companies with board members. There is no need. There are enough companies with enough real need for that cash. What you describe may be right in silicon valley, but the reality in Portugal is very different and Portugal knows that.
I do agree that it’s easy to burn 100K but that is yet another reason for bringing in more expertise. There are not enough existed founders coming back for another round.
In the worst case scenario that you describe, if Portugal will end up having companies with more board members that are burning through money of these expats, that is not such a terrible scenario at all. Burning money is also how you fail and learn and create better companies.
I completely disagree with you about the importance of tax benefits. For those coming to Portugal, tax benefits are critical and they will not and cannot come without them. It’s one of the best things Portugal has ever done. And by the way, UK investors get back up to 82% of money invested in early stage and they invest for tax benefits to a very significant extent. Other countries are doing similar things and it’s a very common way to promote industries.
Finally, I completely agree that what happened with Golden Visas for people like you, who don’t want or intend to move to Portugal is an absolute disgrace and it certainly should be fixed. This is a completely valid point but is a different point that’s unrelated to the one we have been discussing. I don’t know if you have been following the news but AIMA is at least making strong signs of improving and we have indeed seen some movement so really hoping that things will get better.
I think that from my perspective, I exhausted what I have to say about this. It’s fine to have different opinions.