Ventures.eu Forum 2025: Key takeaways for investors & policymakers

The Ventures.eu Forum 2025 convened investors and policymakers to address a critical issue: how to foster the growth of European startups. The event, hosted at Château de Beloeil, under the EU-funded Innovation Radar Bridge project, focused on the challenges hindering European companies from scaling domestically. The central theme revolved around securing sufficient funding to prevent promising ventures from seeking growth opportunities outside of Europe. A key takeaway highlighted that while European VC-backed companies have created significant value, estimated at €3.5 trillion and still growing, a gap remains in late-stage capital compared to the US. The Forum underscored the importance of investors moving beyond early-stage deals. It was also suggested that policymakers should simplify the process for companies to scale within Europe. The forum participants emphasized the need to accelerate capital deployment in Europe. The speakers underscored the importance of quicker access to funding for startups to keep teams together, accelerate growth, and enhance their global competitiveness. Investors can benefit from faster movement in later-stage rounds, while policymakers can facilitate this by removing obstacles to scaling. Family offices were also encouraged to increase their investment in private markets, particularly in deeptech. Speakers emphasized the growing importance of this trend for family offices aiming to build wealth. The discussions at the Forum are set to shape the strategies of investors and policymakers as they seek to support the expansion of the European tech sector.