Top Venture Capital Firms in France in 2026
France is known worldwide for its exceptional startup ecosystem, often called the “Tech Hub.” Startups in France secured significant funding in recent years, and because of the fast-growing environment, 15 percent of the French population shows interest in starting their own business.
But you must be thinking, who provides all this funding to the startups in France? Are there some venture capital firms with dreams of boosting the French economy?
Yes! France has now become home to many venture capital firms. That is why we have researched and prepared a list of the top 7 venture capital firms in France. You can also browse the full venture capital investor directory to see firms beyond this list.
Top Venture Capital Firms in France
Following is the list of some of the top-ranked venture capital firms in France, along with their investment interests and funding range.
Kima Ventures
- Website: Kima Ventures
- Investor Type: Venture Capital Firm
- Investment Interests: Tech
- Investment Stage: Pre-Seed and Seed
Kima Ventures was founded in 2010 by Xavier Niel and Jerémie Berrebi and is currently one of the most active early-stage VC firms in France. Every week, they make almost 2-3 investments at the early stage in tech-related businesses.
The founders prioritize companies that offer unique services/products and have low competition. Although they arrange many pitching competitions on a monthly basis, Kima Ventures also invests in startups through fundraisers and startup accelerators.
They have a team of experienced mentors who guide their portfolio companies and help them through different stages. Kima Ventures typically writes a standard €150,000 one-off ticket per deal. Two of their portfolio companies are:
Wise (formerly TransferWise): Wise is a global money-transfer and international account platform that lets people and businesses send money across borders at low cost.
Umiami: Umiami is a French food-tech startup that develops plant-based whole-cut meat and fish alternatives. Umiami raised its seed round (which included €100,000 from Kima Ventures) in 2021 and has gone on to raise a Series A round backed by Astanor Ventures and others.
Bpifrance
- Website: Bpifrance
- Investor Type: Public Investment Bank (State-Backed VC/PE Arm)
- Investment Interests: Tech and Innovative Software
- Investment Stage: Early and Seed
Bpifrance was created by French law at the end of 2012 and became operational in 2013. It is jointly owned by two state entities: the Caisse des dépôts et consignations and EPIC Bpifrance (formerly EPIC OSEO).
Between direct and indirect investments, Bpifrance poured €1.6bn into French tech startups and venture funds in 2022 alone, up from €1.51bn in 2021. The bank has invested in around 1,000 companies with more than 111 exits to date.
While investing, Bpifrance selects companies that can easily scale on an international level. The team of investors selects startups through online applications and holds several pitching competitions throughout the year.
Bpifrance's investment size varies widely by program, from small non-dilutive grants to minimum €10M checks through its Large Venture growth fund. Some of their portfolio companies are:
Doctolib: Doctolib is an online and mobile booking platform that helps users find doctors and make appointments. It has raised a total of around €815M in funding over 9 rounds.
PayFit: PayFit offers technology that simplifies and automates payroll and HR processes for small and medium-sized businesses.
HalioDx: HalioDx designs and develops diagnostic tests in oncology utilizing the immune context of cancers.
Partech
- Website: Partech
- Investor Type: Venture Capital Firm
- Investment Interests: Software
- Investment Stage: Early and Seed
Partech is a global investment firm that has made more than 700 investments to date. It was founded in 1982 in San Francisco (originally as Paribas Technologies, the venture arm of Banque Paribas) by John Sung Kim, Thomas G. McKinley, and Vincent Worms, and is today headquartered in Paris.
As for the funding process, Partech focuses on business-to-business, fintech, and enterprise software startups. The investors are very strict with the funding criteria and only fund startups that can leave a positive impact.
Partech also organizes pitching competitions to select and invest in promising startups.
Investment amounts at Partech range from roughly €200K to €50M depending on stage. Some of their portfolio companies are:
AB Tasty: AB Tasty is a global leader in feature management, experimentation, and personalization solutions. It empowers brands to build better experiences using personalization, experimentation, recommendations, and search.
Advano: Advano is a startup that offers a scalable silicon solution for Li-ion batteries, accelerating the renewable energy revolution.
Agicap: Agicap is a financial management software company that develops and sells a SaaS platform for SMBs to manage and forecast their cash flows.
Newfund Management
- Website: Newfund Capital
- Investor Type: Venture Capital Firm
- Investment Interests: Med-Tech, Cloud, and Digital Businesses
- Investment Stage: Early and Seed
Founded in 2008 by François Véron, Newfund Management is the first early-stage VC firm with bases in both Paris and Silicon Valley. The network invests in early and seed-stage startups in France and the US.
Like most VC firms, Newfund Management invests in businesses that can generate profits and help them grow their portfolio, typically leading rounds and providing hands-on support to founders.
Newfund's initial checks currently range from around $250,000 to $2M, with smaller commitments available in some regional programs. Some of their portfolio companies are:
Aircall: Aircall is a cloud-based phone system designed for teams like customer support or sales teams. It allows you to integrate your phone system with your CRM & other software tools.
Fairmarkit: Fairmarkit is the intelligent sourcing platform that empowers organizations to more efficiently purchase the goods and services they need. Fairmarkit raised a $30 million Series B round in December 2020.
In2Bones: In2Bones is a medical device company that develops and distributes upper and lower extremity products to enable surgeons to alleviate pain and restore motion.
Alven Capital Partners
- Website:Alven.co
- Investor Type: Venture Capital Firm
- Investment Interests: Fintech, SaaS, and AI
- Investment Stage: Early and Seed
Founded in 2000 by Guillaume Aubin and Charles Letourneur, Alven Capital Partners has backed more than 250 startups since inception. The firm usually invests in early and seed-stage businesses.
Alven Capital Partners organizes pitching competitions and also invests through fundraisers. The firm has some of the most experienced investors and that is why they only invest in startups with strong founding teams and decent growth potential.
Alven's flagship fund has grown from an initial €8M to a €350M fund as of 2022. Three of its portfolio companies are:
Qonto: Qonto is a French startup that provides a banking service tailored for small and medium enterprises and freelancers.
Dataiku: Dataiku is an enterprise artificial intelligence and machine-learning platform. The company provides a common ground for data experts and explorers, a repository of best practices, and shortcuts to machine learning.
Algolia: Algolia is a Search-as-a-Service platform that simplifies building fast, relevant search experiences for websites and apps.
Eurazeo (formerly Idinvest Partners)
- Website: Eurazeo
- Investor Type: Venture Capital and Private Equity Firm
- Investment Interests: Emerging Tech and Software
- Investment Stage: Seed to Growth
Idinvest Partners, founded in 1997 as AGF Private Equity and independent from 2010, became a subsidiary of Eurazeo in 2018 and was fully absorbed into the Eurazeo platform in 2020. The Idinvest brand has since been retired, and its venture and growth investments now run under the Eurazeo name.
These investors fund startups across the digital economy, from consumer tech to biotech, and have backed several French unicorns and market leaders over the years.
Some of the notable companies backed by the former Idinvest venture team, now part of Eurazeo, are:
Deezer: Deezer is an online platform and app that provides songs from a variety of genres. It’s a globally recognized leader in music streaming.
Criteo: Criteo is a personalized retargeting company that works with internet retailers to serve online display advertisements to consumers.
Happn: Happn is a location-based mobile dating application that enables its users to build connections based on real-time interactions.
Sofinnova Partners
- Website: Sofinnova Partners
- Investor Type: Venture Capital Firm
- Investment Interests: Life Science
- Investment Stage: Seed to Later-Stage
Founded in 1972, Sofinnova Partners is one of Europe's longest-established life sciences venture capital firms, having backed more than 500 companies over 50 years.
Sofinnova invests in startups located inside and outside France, as long as they show signs of strong growth potential in the biopharma, medtech, and digital medicine sectors. Once a startup has been funded, Sofinnova provides the startup leaders with hands-on guidance to help build the company.
Sofinnova's investment size varies by fund and stage, from early seed checks up to larger later-stage rounds. Some of their portfolio companies are:
Cure51: Cure51 is a developer of a clinical and molecular database designed to accelerate drug discovery for cancer. The company helps analyze the biology of long-term cancer survivors.
Bioptimus: Bioptimus is a Paris-based AI startup that aims to create a universal AI foundation model for biology. The company's technology transforms multiscale data into actionable representations.
Wrap-Up
Before we conclude, remember that VC firms like to invest in startups with high ROI. That is why you should conduct thorough research and focus on improving your pitching skills before attending an investor meeting. Tools like pitch deck database can help you see what a strong deck looks like before you approach any of these firms.
And finally, trust your startup idea and remain confident throughout the investor meeting. If you don't believe in your business idea, it would be impossible to convince other people to fund it. You can also use AngelMatch's investor directory to find investors beyond this list who fit your stage and sector.
Frequently Asked Questions
How to make your startup investable?
To make a startup investible, focus on a scalable business model, a strong team, a well-defined market opportunity, and evidence of market validation.
Do Angel Investors Provide Mentorship Programs?
Yes, many angel investors provide mentorship programs and financial support. They leverage their experience to offer strategic insights, assist in critical decision-making, and facilitate introductions to their network connections. This mentorship is pivotal for startups, aiding them in overcoming obstacles and expediting their growth trajectory.
What is the difference between Venture Capital Firms and Individual Angel Investors?
Venture capital firms are organized setups that aggregate capital from various investors and deploy it into startups at a larger scale, offering expertise and guidance.
In contrast, individual angel investors are private individuals who invest personal funds directly into startups, typically at an early stage, using a more personalized approach and hands-on involvement in the startup's growth.
Is Bpifrance a venture capital firm or a government bank?
Bpifrance is a state-backed public investment bank, not a private VC firm. It invests directly in startups and also acts as a limited partner in dozens of private French VC funds, making it one of the most influential players in French tech funding.
Do French VC firms invest in startups outside France?
Many do. Firms like Sofinnova Partners and Partech invest across Europe and beyond, though most maintain a strong home-market focus and prefer startups with some connection to France or a French founding team.
