Discover/EUVC

EUVC Live at GoWest | The Case for a United European LP Strategy feat. Philippe Tibi, Chris Elphick, Christina Brinck, Daniel Keiper-Knorr, Joe Schorge, Michiel Scheffer, Adem Yakisirer and Mia Grosen

EUVCFeb 17, 20261h 4min

This EUVC Live panel tackles Europe's most pressing capital allocation challenge: how to mobilize domestic investment to compete with U.S. and Asian tech giants. The discussion reveals stark data points - 45% of government-backed startups can't secure private follow-on funding, and entire regions like Greece and Slovenia remain virtually cut off from VC ecosystems - while exploring how strategic LPs and public-private partnerships could reshape European growth-stage investing.

Key takeaways

  • •45% of European government-backed startups fail to secure private VC follow-on funding, exposing a critical gap between public grants and private capital markets
  • •Geographic inequality in European VC is extreme - while 55% of startups in major hubs raise easily, entire countries like Greece and Slovenia lack functional VC ecosystems
  • •Public capital intervention at growth stage addresses market failures that private markets can't solve, particularly for deep-tech companies requiring patient capital
  • •Strategic LPs like corporates operate fundamentally differently from financial LPs, focusing on strategic alignment over pure financial returns
  • •Europe needs coordinated LP strategy to prevent its most promising startups from migrating to better-funded U.S. and Asian markets

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european-vcpublic-private-partnershipsgrowth-stage-fundingdeep-techgovernment-policy

Best moment

35:09· 36smarket insight

Why public capital is needed at growth stage when private markets exist

35:09 / 35:45

I gotta ask you this question. Why do we need a public actor to act both, of course, at the early stage? I think most people can understand that. But why at the growth stage? Why can't we not solve this with private capital?

Well, there are different reasons for this. One is one is enough an argument like a market failure. The the market the private market has not done it. That's one argument. The second one is we are in a major transition. We are moving from a set of technologies to another set of technologies, so the risks are substantially higher. And, a public intervention helps to to to to speed up the transition.

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EUVC

Practical Framework

It's very different to change role as an LP - being a financial LP looking for one type of fund investments versus being a strategic LP looking for another type of investments.

This draws a clear distinction between financial and strategic LP approaches, providing a useful framework for understanding different LP motivations. Coming from someone who has been both, it has credibility and practical value.

24:35 - 25:1439s

EUVC

market insight

Why public capital is needed at growth stage when private markets exist

A discussion on the rationale behind public sector involvement in growth-stage investing, beyond just early-stage support. The speaker argues that market failures and the heightened risks of major technological transitions justify public intervention to accelerate innovation adoption, even when private capital is available.

35:09 - 35:4536s
public-private-investingmarket-failuretechnology-transition

EUVC

market insight

Why 45% of government-backed startups can't raise private funding

A discussion about the concerning statistic that 45% of companies backed by the European Innovation Council (EIC) fail to secure follow-on venture capital funding. The speaker questions what's going wrong in the handoff between public grants and private markets, highlighting a potential gap in Europe's startup funding ecosystem.

37:23 - 37:4926s
eic-fundingpublic-private-fundingeuropean-startups

EUVC

market insight

55% of European startups get funding easily, but entire regions lack VC systems

A panelist reveals striking statistics about European startup funding, noting that while 55% of companies secure funding relatively easily, 10-15% receive no funding at all. The speaker attributes this funding gap partly to many European countries outside the Northwest still lacking properly functioning VC ecosystems.

37:49 - 38:1728s
european-fundingvc-ecosystemsregional-inequality

EUVC

market insight

Why Greek and Slovenian startups struggle with VC fundraising

A discussion of how geography and sector specialization create fundraising challenges for startups in smaller European markets. The speaker explains that while some sectors like SaaS may be well-developed in countries like Portugal, deep tech faces different regional constraints. They also highlight how founders often struggle with VC selection and approach strategy.

38:20 - 38:5434s
european-marketsfundraising-challengesstartup-geography

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