1 – Phase 2 of the Tibi initiative: Amplifying the notable success of Phase 1
Phase 1 of the Tibi Initiative
Launched in 2019, the “Tibi” initiative positioned France as the leading technology investment ecosystem within the European Union. It aimed to increase the financing capacity of technology companies by mobilizing the savings of institutional investors (LPs). In 2019, 21 French institutional partner investors committed to invest €6 billion between 2020 and 2022 in late-stage private equity funds and in publicly traded tech funds established in France (Global Tech). The French State acted as a “facilitator” of this French finance marketplace initiative, through political support and coordination orchestrated by the French Treasury.
The partner investors of the initiative exceeded their promise to invest €6 billion in “Tibi 1”, with a total of €6.4 billion invested in approved funds. The commitment of the LPs from Phase 1 is also measured by the investment pace of the approved funds (9 investments over 3 years on average by the LPs).
The initiative was a catalyst for the tech ecosystem, with nearly €30 billion injected, of which about two-thirds went into “Tibi” labeled late-stage private equity funds and one-third into approved publicly traded funds. This acceleration has contributed, in addition to other initiatives carried by the French State, making France the EU country that raised the most funds since 2022. In 2023, French technology companies raised €8.3 billion, compared to €6.6 billion in Germany.
Phase 2 of the Initiative
“Tibi 2” aims to consolidate this achievement with a commitment of €7 billion from LPs. This new phase covers a broader scope: in addition to late-stage and publicly traded tech segments, an early-stage segment continues to feed the primary pool of technology startups and the financing of breakthrough innovation projects.
Beyond merely financial flows, Phase 2 aims to strengthen France’s competitive advantages: density, diversity, and depth of the ecosystem; size of the managed capitals; support for the most ambitious startups; and the dynamic of the human ecosystem. It also aims to better target market segments that are less well covered: financing of deep tech and industrial and ecological transitions; financing of breakthrough innovation in established companies; enhancing of the primary financing capacities of the stock market ecosystem.
The base of partner investors in the initiative has significantly expanded during Phase 2. It increased from 21 investors initially, then to 30 at the launch of Phase 2 in June 2023, and to 35 investors in May 2024. This demonstrates the attractiveness of this national project, which now involves not only institutional investors but also large corporations and Family Offices.
In this context, the mission continued its work of persuading investors who wish to commit to medium-term technology financing. In May 2024, five new partner investors joined the Tibi initiative: Groupe ADP, La Française des Jeux, MACSF, Mérieux Développement, and Pfizer.
The mission notes a significant enhancement of the ecosystem’s ambitions. As of the end of April 2024, the mission had received nearly 130 applications for approval for Phase 2, with 54 funds approved by the end of April 2024 (50 in the non-listed segment and 4 in the listed segment). More than 15 venture capital fund candidates intend to manage more than one billion euros each. According to the mission, this ambition appears credible for the vast majority of them.
2 – The Tibi initiative benefits both the fund ecosystem (listed and unlisted) and French startups
(i) A diversified and large unlisted ecosystem
Since the launch of the initiative, 92 venture capital and growth capital funds have received the “Tibi” label in the unlisted segment, managing €22 billion to date and targeting a portfolio of €35 to €40 billion. Partner investors have contributed to more than a quarter of the funds raised. The dry powder of the approved funds is estimated at €13 billion. Given the upcoming fund applications (new or successors to those already approved), it is estimated that the technology funds of the French financial marketplace will manage between €40 and €50 billion by 2026, with the potential to have around fifteen late-stage funds managing more than €1 billion each.
The 92 approved funds reflect the diversity and quality of the French financial marketplace: 53 late-stage funds (including 15 first-time), 37 early-stage funds (including 7 first-time), and 2 secondary funds (including 1 first-time). The mission counts 43 generalist funds, 34 deeptech funds (including 16 health funds), 13 ecological/energy transition funds, including 3 impact funds, and 2 secondary funds. A quarter of the approved funds are “first timers,” demonstrating the entrepreneurial dynamism of the marketplace. Numerous recruitments at all levels of seniority followed the development of the funds. Effectively, the unlisted funds have recruited 348 people (including 174 seniors) since their labeling, a 40% increase in workforce for the French finance marketplace, according to the inititaive.
The approved funds invest in highly diversified sectors, with deeptech leading (27% of the total investments made by the approved funds), followed by software (23%), platforms (22%), and fintech (6%). Across the board, the health sector accounts for nearly 20% of investments, and ecological and energy transitions over 10%. The deeptech sector includes primarily companies in the health sector (medtech and biotech) and to a lesser extent, energy (5% of the total investments of the funds), cybersecurity (4%), mobility (2%), and AI (1%). The expansion of the initiative to include early stage and funds focusing on energy, ecological, or digital transitions contributes significantly to increasing investments in deeptech and transitions and correspondingly decreases the proportion of investments in platforms.
(ii) A growing nascent listed ecosystem, capable of significantly participating in the IPOs of French tech companies
Since the launch of the initiative, 29 Global Tech funds have been approved within the listed segment. As of December 2023, they manage €15 billion. LPs have contributed to nearly 20% of the assets under management. The largest fund manages €4 billion, the second €2 billion, and three others have assets exceeding €650 million (compared to none in 2022). A point of attention is the increase in the size of other players which have, for most of them, been created very recently. Critical size of a fund is often considered a necessary condition to be considered for investment by institutional investors. Therefore, the action of Global Tech funds must be accompanied by a greater participation of generalist funds in IPOs.
The investments of listed Global Tech funds cover a very diversified set of sectors (health, cleantech, fintech, cloud, AI, robotics, semiconductors, industry 4.0, particularly), which mainly focuses on large cap (80%) and to a lesser extent, on small and mid-cap (20%). Among these 29 Global Tech funds, 20 are generalists, 5 are dedicated to ecological and energy transitions, 3 funds cover AI, 1 fund covers the silver economy (or seniors’ economy), and specifically targets the IPOs of French companies.
The development of the funds has been accompanied by numerous recruitments at all levels of seniority. The listed Global Tech funds have recruited 55 people (including 32 senior level) since their approval.
(iii) A very substantial contribution to the financing of the most ambitious French startups
The Tibi-approved VC funds invest primarily in France, due to domestic bias, while being geographically diversified. They thus see a very large part of the international deal flow and testify of the international influence and reputation of France. The approved late-stage funds have invested nearly 50% of their portfolio in French startups and scale-ups, 30% in the rest of the EU, and 20% in the rest of the world (mainly in the USA and the UK). It comes to no surprise that early-stage funds are proportionaly more allocated in France than are late-stage funds (54% vs 47%, respectively) and less allocared in the rest of the world (14% vs 20%, respectively). The proportion of investment in the EU, excluding France, is similar between these two asset classes, at 33%.
Approved funds are present in almost all major fundraisings in 2023 and more than half of fundraisings over €50 million. They contributed to 90% of the fundraisings exceeding €100 million and 56% of the fundraisings exceeding €50 million. Additionally, since the beginning of the initiative, the approved funds have invested in 14 French unicorns and nearly 50 startups from the Next40/FT120.
On the stock markets, the approved Global Tech “listed” funds have invested 10% of their portfolio in France, 11% in the rest of the EU, and 79% in the rest of the world (mainly in the United-States). This allocation reflects the reality of the technological investment universe, albeit with a European bias. These proportions are expected to improve positively with the emergence of major European listed values, still in growth stage in the VC portfolios. The mission can be perceived as a reminder that supporting Global Tech funds leads to the strengthening of the ecosystem of qualified managers capable of taking structural positions in the future IPOs of French companies.
Consequently, the Global Tech funds from the listed segment have been systematically active during the IPOs of French companies by participating in the price setting exercice. These funds thus constituted 25% of the order books for OVH and Believe. They were also at the forefront of the recent IPO of Planisware (April 2024), which was heavily oversubscribed.
(iv) In 2023, despite adverse economic conditions, LPs’ investments have been overally satisfactory
The investments of the partner investors continued in 2023, despite a challenging interest rate market environment. The dynamics were very heterogeneous in 2023, but overall, the investments exceeded the expectations set that year for the initiative. The partner investors indeed invested €2.5 billion since the launch of Phase 2, of which about two-thirds were in the approved unlisted late stage and early stage funds, and one-third in the approved listed equity funds. In the unlisted segment, €1.3 billion were invested in “Tibi” labeled funds.
3 – Perspectives of the Tibi Initiative
i) Regarding LPs’ commitments:
“Tibi 2” retains the goal of reaching €10 billion for three main reasons: (i) the commitment of new investors, (ii) the anticipated improvement in the financial environment which will enable an increase in the investments from partner investors; (iii) the quality of the offering from funds and financing projects (performance, teams, and investment thesis in particular), which is likely to stimulate investor demand.
ii) Regarding financial instruments:
Financing breakthrough innovation projects constitutes a second pillar of “Tibi 2”. This involves financing high-risk industrial projects with a proven technological component, via Special Purpose Vehicles (SPV), Joint Ventures (JV), or spin-offs from listed or unlisted French companies. These projects may offer interesting risk-return profiles, particularly after initial technological de-risking. Several projects have already been brought to the attention of the initiative.
iii) Regarding IPOs:
IPOs are a strategic objective of the initiative, primarily because they represent the preferred exit strategy for venture capital investments. This is largely due to IPOs providing substantial comfort regarding the ongoing independent development of successful French startups. However, it has been noted that across Europe, including the United Kingdom, IPOs are hindered by the limited engagement of institutional investors. This challenge stems from both cyclical and structural issues, with a notably insufficient proportion of capital invested in conviction strategies. Promoting the initiative’s Global Tech funds is a preliminary measure to address this issue. The mission will continue to explore and implement strategies both in France and internationally to enhance the efficacy and appeal of IPOs.
iv) Regarding investors:
Internationalization of the initiative will continue to be developed, in a context where several European projects are being established to achieve similar results. The mission will seek reciprocal relationships to increase the number of LPs of the initiative and foreign investment funds operating in France, particularly with the support of Experts en Financement des Entreprises Technologiques (EFET). The EFET comprises about fifteen investment banks and placement agents who support the mission pro bono to raise awareness among international investors and funds about the attractiveness of the French ecosystem.
The robustness, density, and depth of the French technology financing ecosystem are not only objectives but also prerequisites for the mission’s success. Since the initiative’s validation, the funds involved have made a total of 403 hires, with 90% of these positions located in France and more than half at a senior level.
v) Regarding training:
The mission will persist in its efforts to scale up the ecosystem by co-organizing a variety of conference and training sessions. Since 2019, it has provided LPs with events that cover a broad spectrum of technological themes, including IPOs, semiconductors, artificial intelligence, energy transition, and quantum technologies. These events are led by experts from accredited funds, startups financed by these funds, and the EFET. Additionally, a diploma-awarding training cycle focused on HealthTech, offered through the École Polytechnique Executive Education, was made available to the initiative’s partner investors and the funds. This program aims to enhance the engagement of investors with this strategic asset class vital to France and was collaboratively designed by France Biotech, the Health Innovation Agency, and the initiative itself. Plans to introduce future training cycles focused on other deep tech verticals are underway.