Eric Gossart

Only 4% of EU VC's have previous startup experience... versus 60% in US  In CVC in EU it will even be worse... (educated guess)  There are some more interesting insights on the low level of support by VC's, the needs from startups, .... in the article below  This confirms also the need for more VC Platform roles in the EU #vcplatform (see my previous post on VC Platform roles)  #venturecapital 

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I was honored to join a panel yesterday, moderated by Jean Rognetta and Morgan Hunault-Berret, with fellow panelist Olivier Martret. The provocative topic on our agenda: “Have French VCs already lost against US VCs in GenAI?” It was the opportunity to share our thought at daphni, here are a few takeaways: 1) Fund size matters: While it's evident that apart from BPI, French VCs lack the critical size to play a significant role in foundational models funding rounds. However, reducing GenAI startups to 200M+ seed rounds is an oversimplification. We see a clear market segmentation between foundational models - that share caracteristics with infrastructure deals - and application layers. There are probably 4 deals in the last 18 months where French VC could not positionate. The issue of the size of French VC funds is an old debate, older than ChatGPT. 2) International mindset: French startups have been criticised a lot in the past for lacking ambition and international mindset. We have been expecting what’s happening right now for a while: it's time to celebrate. Most of the world's leading VC funds are now co-investing with us in France. 3) A Seed GenAI startup still have the problematic of a seed startup: Seed has always been dominated by local actors for sourcing reasons but also because the support you can bring is really ecosystem specific. 4) Co-investment: We're actually very enthusiastic about co-investing with US VCs, who bring added value and help French startups penetrate international markets. From an exit perspective, pursuing a US IPO remains the best scenario and requires to success in the US at some point. Having the right US VC in series A is a great support. 5) Building a Top Ecosystem: France is on track to establish itself as one of the world's top three ecosystems for GenAI, a feat not possible without foreign VCs. This isn't just national pride – it's a sentiment echoed by global investors who recognize the dynamic changes occurring within our borders and knock at the door to exchange about it. More to come soon! Thanks Louis Petitjean and Matthieu Bouhelier 

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Watching the Roland-Garros French Open over the weekend and saw this motto: Victory belongs to the most tenacious. The failure rate of startups is high. According to recent statistics, approximately 90% of startups fail, with around 10% to 20% achieving long-term success. Various sources attribute this high failure rate to multiple factors, including under capitalization, poor product-market fit, inadequate marketing strategies, and team issues. Different industries exhibit varying failure rates. The failure rate for technology startups is around 63% within the first five years , while the failure rate for e-commerce startups is about 80%. HealthTech startups also face a high failure rate of around 80%, largely due to challenges in determining value propositions and strategy. Despite the high risk, some startups do succeed, sometimes making up for the losses of the many failures, which is why investors continue to support them. As the early stage investment market stands currently, a founder should not expect an investment based on the relative merits of a company. In other words, you may be building a great company but there’s no guarantee of an investment. This predicament requires both defensive and offensive strategies to navigate. One that we are seeing increasingly is the move toward cash flow neutral/ cash flow positive operations.

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🕚Here’s a flashback to an exciting and bold VC fund launch from 2023. 💸 In November 2023 France based Ring Capital announced the 1st closing of their second growth fund – Altitude Growth II - at €125 million out of a target of €250 million, with backing from the European Investment Fund (EIF), Tikehau Capital, SWEN Capital Partners and Bpifrance. 💡 Altitude II is an impact growth fund, with tickets of €5-20m dedicated to mature companies with more than €10m in revenue and profitable or positive EBITDA that are developing solutions to meet environmental or social challenges. 🌍 #Europe 📈 The Ring Altitude Impact Growth Fund strategy has already made investment in 17 exciting companies including Karos, Castalie, YouSchool,Le Mercato de l'Emploi, LeHibou, Yespark, LiveMentor, Stych, among others. 💭 “Being focused on impact and profitable companies really helped us win over investors, especially those who had already trusted us." - Nicolas CELIER, CEO and co-founder of Ring Capital. 🗞️Maddyness https://lnkd.in/eSUY3JqY 👏 For the #AudaciousInvestors unleashing innovation and empowering tomorrow🚀 Geoffroy Bragadir I Pierre-Alexis de Vauplane I Yasmina Bekkouche I Sandra Armstrong I Alban de La Bretèche I Laure Tallon I Eve Sebag I Marie-Capucine Lemétais I Thibaut Bechetoille I Servane Metzger-Corrigou I I Laurent Babut I Charlotte Lafont I Thomas Marsal I Sibylle Behaghel I Daphné Dupont Gurs I Maria Millan I Team Ring Capital … #venturecapital #vc #funds #startups #entrepreneurs #funding #impact #tech #esg #technology #innovation #france #growthcapital #venture

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What do you need to be top quartile as a SaaS company in Europe? Sébastien Le Roy started to share the results of the Serena European SaaS benchmark during #Saastr Europa this week. Great way to quickly check whether you’re on track for a next VC round or simply what you have to improve. More results coming soon with the whole report.

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in French :) https://lnkd.in/e7W5Hu6T #capitalraising #startups #fundraising #founders #venturecapital #investors #vc #vcfunding #technology #startup #tech

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Crunch Lab, a startup from our portfolio, has just raised $3.5M in a seed round led by Multicoin Capital ! Big big congrats to Jean & Arnaud and the whole team for the amazing work. I witnessed impressive dedication from the whole team to close this round and reach new heights. What does Crunch Lab la do? Crunch Lab makes it easier for big companies to unlock the value in their data by running machine learning competitions through their community, CrunchDAO, which has over 6,000 data scientists, quants, and ML engineers. These experts compete to build AI models that give companies actionable insights, mainly to the finance industry. With this funding, Crunch Lab will ramp up their operations and dive into new data-rich markets. Bravo! Link in the comments for the full article.

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A must read for every founder (and investor) in B2B marketplaces. ⤵️ All credits to Fabrice Grinda + FJ Labs 👏🏽 https://lnkd.in/eB7uGzyH #firstdegree #founders #investors #whyrelationshipsmatter
#alwaysbelearning #sharingknowledge

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Are French unicorns ready for their IPO? I'll say yes, and probably even a bit better than German startups! Let me tell you why. Most IPOs are driven by the CEO / CFO couple but there is a third important wheel to this constellation: the CMO! A big part of a successful IPO and then stock exchange valuation is communication. It's all about trust, baby! And trust is built through communication & thought leadership. French startups are often very strong in being transparent and proactive in their communications. So this is a solid basis to work on. Here are my learnings from working on KATEK GROUP's IPO: ‣ It's not all about the press: Yes, mandatory investor relations (IR) news have to be communicated through the press. By going further and also using your company's owned channels you show even more transparency to your stakeholders. Communicating on LinkedIn will enable dialog with your investors. ‣ IR does not need to be boring: Financial reports might not sound as sexy as the next big brand campaign, but it can be. Use videos to explain the numbers further, plan live Q&A sessions with the CEO. Be creative and stay true to your brand's values. ‣ It's about the people: The stock exchange market is a numbers and money world. By involving your C-level in the communication you will be able to build up a stronger trust in your company. In people we trust! Here think about news hijacking to position your C-level as the experts they are, do video interviews or quote statements. You can read more about KATEK's IPO and strategic communication here: https://lnkd.in/dFYscP3k #IPO #ListedInFrankfurt #FrenchTech #StartupCommunication

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📰 Great paper released in the well-known French newspaper La Tribune about the bankruptcy trend in the French tech industry. The report highlights the research we've run recently on this topic with a great interview by Edouard Thibaut COO of ScaleX Invest 😎 Maurice OMS Banque de France ScaleX Invest By Early Metrics 👉 Franck Sebag #Tech #Investment #Startup #Scaleup

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'Healthcare platform Doctolib has conquered France — but can it take on Europe?' Lloyd Price, HealthTech M&A Advisor and Partner at Nelson Advisors shares his thoughts with Daphné Leprince-Ringuet from Sifted discussing Doctolib, their continued success, big future and potential next moves. 'Few startups in France can claim to have changed the way people behave in as systemic a way as Doctolib. Launched in 2013 by Stanislas Niox-Chateau, Doctolib has become a key component of the country’s healthcare system. Its first product — an online booking platform that lets patients schedule doctor appointments — saw huge adoption in a sector with very little digitisation. > Today, the company covers “almost all of the French population”, says Doctolib’s CFO Pierre Vergnes. It counts 80m patient accounts spanning three countries, of which the vast majority remains in France. Doctolib also has 19m users in Germany, which it expanded to in 2016, and a “nascent” number of users in Italy, launched in 2021. > During the Covid pandemic, the French government selected the company as an official partner to manage vaccination appointments. “[In France], they’re a utility company for running healthcare infrastructure now,” says Lloyd Price, a healthtech M&A advisor. Mergers, Acquisitions, Growth and Strategy for Healthcare Technology companies > HealthTech M&A - Buy Side, Sell Side, Growth & Strategy services for companies in Europe, Middle East and Africa. Visit www.nelsonadvisors.co.uk > HealthTech M&A Newsletter from Nelson Advisors - HealthTech, Health IT, Digital Health Insights and Analysis. Subscribe Today! https://lnkd.in/e5hTp_xb > Healthcare Technology Buy Side, Sell Side, Growth & Strategy services for Founders, Owners and Investors. Email [email protected] > Healthcare Technology Thought Leadership from Nelson Advisors – Market Insights, Analysis & Predictions. Visit https://lnkd.in/ezyUh5i https://lnkd.in/edDCqmrz

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📈 What drives top-tier performance in venture capital? In the latest episode of Entretien avec un VC by Benjamin Wattinne, Serena Partner Sébastien Le Roy, author of the Serena European SaaS Benchmark, unpacks what it takes to make a venture capital fund thrive. 🧑‍💻 Sébastien began as an engineer and entrepreneur until a pivotal trip to San Francisco shifted his career towards VC. Returning to France, he joined Serena as an intern, where his passion took root, ultimately leading him to become a partner. 🎙️ Some key takeaways from this episode: ✨ VC is high-risk, high-reward. Serena’s “home run” philosophy is about backing bold and visionary founders who can multiply the fund’s size and change the landscape of their industry. By partnering with them on strategy and execution, we accelerate growth in high-stakes environments. ✨ Most VC teams typically include two operating members. At Serena, we’ve built a team of eight. This larger structure provides founders with the resources needed to streamline execution and prepare for funding rounds. Our approach, recognized by the France Digitale Operating Talent Award, reflects our commitment to going beyond capital to address founders’ evolving needs. ✨ The Serena Squad, our network of over 500 C-level executives across our portfolio, is a powerhouse for founders. This community grants their teams access to practical templates, growth-focused workshops, and direct peer support. By connecting with other leaders, founders and their teams can navigate common challenges and scale more effectively. ✨ Our focus on Applied AI and Climate Tech At Serena, we’re especially enthusiastic about two areas: ➡️ Vertical AI solutions tailored to industries like finance and manufacturing, solving complex problems at scale. ➡️ Climate Tech, with a focus on decarbonization and biodiversity.  ➡️ One of Serena's standout investments is Descartes Underwriting, which operates at the intersection of AI and climate. Descartes leverages artificial intelligence to build parametric insurance models, assessing and pricing climate risks in real time. 💡 Spotlight: Jimmy A “coup de cœur” for Sébastien, Jimmy Energy is revolutionizing industrial heat decarbonization with nuclear fission—a game-changer for emissions-heavy industries. Tune it to deep dive into the inner workings of VCs!

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Does it make sense to 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗨𝗦 as a founder 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗘𝘂𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲? 🤔 Short answer: YES. 🚀 Long answer: Also yes, and here’s why… According to this insightful piece by Data Driven VC 📝, moving to the US can significantly boost your startup's unicorn potential 🦄. 🇺🇸 is a powerhouse for networking, funding, and scaling. So if you're on the fence about making the move, it might be time to take the leap! 🌍 ➡️ 🇺🇸 Big thanks to the authors (Dr. Andre Retterath and Jérôme Jaggi) for the great insights! 🙌 Check out the full story here: https://lnkd.in/e2fmgvDk

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📺 Yesterday I was interviewed on #BFMBusiness to share the insights of our recent study on the bankruptcies of post-Series A companies in France. Since we created the company 10 years ago, we have always aimed to provide the best insights to facilitate investment in private companies. With this report, we want to highlight the structural and conjectural challenges faced by entrepreneurs & investors to anticipate the risks. Thanks a lot to Laure Closier for this dynamic interview! #startup #scaleup #growth #tech #scalex #scalexinvest ScaleX Invest By Early Metrics https://lnkd.in/dGqfqMDg

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💥 Linkup annonces a 3M€ funding round to plug LLMs to high-quality content.    Much like the music industry before Spotify, AI applications today face hurdles in accessing quality content. In the early 2000s, people often turned to platforms like Pirate Bay to download music, but that came with legal risks, poor sound quality, and artists missing out on fair compensation. Similarly, today many AI tools depend on existing web frameworks like search engines and web scraping to collect information.   However, as the AI landscape evolves, these methods are proving less efficient and raising new concerns around legal compliance and fair use of copyrighted content.   Linkup aims to solve this problem by taking a new approach with premium content providers with both a legal and ethical consideration.   Delighted to support this top-notch team Philippe Mizrahi, Denis Charrier, Boris Toledano alongside Seedcamp, Motier Ventures, Kima Ventures OPRTRS CLUB and amazing BAs ! cc Sia Houchangnia, Nicolas Essayan, Christophe Raynaud, Noé Gersanois, Chloe Timsit, Alix François-Poncet, Axeleo Capital (AXC)

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If you ever doubted that August is a quiet period for Venture Capital check the French fundraising reports. For the past weeks, no financing rounds have been announced in the french ecosystem. Only 2 investments have been announced for the moment : Morpho Labs (Fintech/Blockchain) : 45,8M€  Jared (Fintech) : 1M€ This is the worst month since the post-Covid era. This could be explained by many factors :  ➡️ Less start-ups matching new investor’s criteria (ie. being profitable) ➡️ Investors waiting patiently to see which start-up in their portfolio is going to succeed. Their patience could also be motivated by LPs being reluctant to invest more in VC as an asset class.  ➡️ Startups often wait for September to announce their round

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Whether you're a French startup founder or investing in the French tech ecosystem, this is a must-have resource: The Serena 2024 Edition of the Ultimate VC List is live! Fundraising can be incredibly time-consuming. That’s why, back in 2016, Serena created the Ultimate VC List to streamline the process for entrepreneurs in France. Now an interactive platform, it has supported over 100,000 entrepreneurs and VCs in the ecosystem. Some key trends Sébastien Le Roy and Maxime Furet spotted when putting this edition together: 🚀 The French VC ecosystem is thriving with new funds like Resonance, OVNI Capital, Yellow, and Varsity, signaling a vibrant and expanding market. 🌍 There’s increased interest from US and European funds for French startups, particularly in AI and climate tech, and a rise in non-traditional investors such as Business Angel Clubs and Family Offices (which are now covered by a new section). 🔧 Infrastructure investors are playing a critical role in funding innovative hybrid models amid global warming challenges. ♻️ The growing presence of impact VCs highlights the focus on socially and environmentally impactful investments.

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🕚Here’s a flashback to an exciting and bold VC fund launch from 2023. 💸 In Q4 2023 Paris, France based Venture Capital Firm Hi Inov - Dentressangle successfully raised €75mn at first closing of its third fund from investors including DENTRESSANGLE and new investors from Germany and Luxembourg. 🌍 #France #Benelux and DACH region: #Germany #Austria #Switzerland 💡 #B2B fund targeting six sectors (i) #SaaS (ii) #PaaS / no-code / low-code (iii) #Cloud infrastructure software / DevOps (iv) #ClimateTech (v) Collaborative Tools (vi) #ArtificialIntelligence / #Data. Tickets of €2 million to €6 million and can go up to €15 million for #SeriesA and #SeriesB investment. A small #seedstage pocket of about €10mn to make between 10 and 12 investments. 📈 ‘Over the past ten years, Hi Inov has invested in 39 start-ups incl. Styla, 360Learning, Deepki, Glopal, Kenjo, Luzmo, Famoco, Zelros, amongst others; and now has €350mn in capital under management. 💭 “The fund is 50% bigger than previous funds, but we will keep a focused strategy. We simply want to have more reserves for the complicated period ahead so that we can support our societies more..." - Valerie Gombart, co-founder and CEO of Hi Inov. 🗞️Monon Triniac Maddyness https://lnkd.in/etPX22sF 👏 For the #AudaciousInvestors unleashing innovation and empowering tomorrow🚀 Pierre-Henri Dentressangle I Wolfgang Krause I Marie ROLE I Veronique Gauduchon I Valère Rames I Eléonore Caillaud I Camille Rivet I Nicolas Amiet I Myrtil Mitanga I Audrey Caramelle I Team Hi Inov … #venturecapital #vc #funds #startups #entrepreneurs #funding #tech #entrepreneurship #technology #innovation #paris #venture #fund

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