Next 40/French Tech 120: what should we remember from the new promotion?

It is now a ritual in French Tech. At the start of the year, Cédric O, Secretary of State for the Digital Transition and Electronic Communications, unveiled the list of French start-ups selected to join the Next 40 and French Tech 120 indices. accompaniment, launched for the first time in 2019 and led by the French Tech Mission, aims to transform the nuggets of the digital ecosystem into world-class champions. And with 12 new French unicorns in 2021, this vitality of French Tech is reflected in the promotion of French Tech Next 40/120.

First thing that jumps out at you, two pillars of the Next 40 have disappeared from the index. These are OVHcloud and Believe, and this is good news since these two companies have made their IPO on Euronext Paris. A new trend in the ecosystem that Cédric O hopes to see grow in the coming years, while France now has more than 25 unicorns, these start-ups valued at more than a billion dollars. It is therefore logical to discover that unicorns now represent more than half of the members of the Next 40. Among the eight new entrants in the upper range of the ranking, we find in particular Sorare, who signed last year French Tech fund by raising 580 million euros.

One-third renewal

To join the Next 40 in 2022, it was also necessary to have raised at least 49.6 million euros, against 22 million euros a year earlier, which demonstrates the progression of the financing capacities of the ecosystem in course of the past year. Last year, 22 funding rounds of more than 100 million euros were thus carried out for a total value of five billion euros, i.e. a spectacular leap of 194% compared to 2020. In total, start-ups French companies raised 11.6 billion euros in 2021, an increase of 115% compared to 2020 (5.4 billion euros), according to the EY barometer of venture capital in France.

As a result of the vitality of the ecosystem, the renewal rate for the list of 120 start-ups making up the two indices is around a third (36 entrants/leavers), comparable to that of last year (34 entrants/ outgoing). Six companies moved from the Next 40 to the French Tech 120, while seven start-ups left the entire list.

And for good reason, in a sector that attracts more and more substantial investments, it is not always easy to keep up with the infernal pace of fundraising or to maintain significant growth. Sigfox, which appeared in the very first promotion of the Next 40, has also paid a high price since the Toulouse company, inventor of the “0G” network and former symbol of French Tech, has just been placed in receivership. . Same thing for Blade, which was taken over by the investment fund of Octave Klaba, the emblematic founder of OVHcloud. As the ecosystem matures, its level of requirement increases.

19,000 jobs created in 2022

This greater maturity of French Tech is also reflected in the number of jobs created. The companies of the new promotion thus plan to generate 19,000 jobs this year, against 10,000 last year with the previous promotion. The neobank for professionals Qonto, which raised 486 million euros in January, plans in particular to recruit 1,500 new employees by 2025, while Exotec, the first industrial unicorn in the ecosystem, aims to hire 500 R&D engineers. (research and development) at the same time. According to Roland Berger, Next 40 and French Tech 120 companies could create up to 224,000 jobs in France by 2025, which would contribute around 6% of France’s GDP growth to this horizon.

Obviously satisfied with the performance of the French ecosystem, Cédric O nevertheless measures the path that remains to be traveled. “While it allows us to become aware of the progress made, this ranking is also a good indicator of the steps we need to take, particularly in terms of gender balance and diversity in French Tech”, believes the Secretary of State in charge of Digital. Indeed, there are only 14 leaders or founders in the new class. A figure certainly on the rise (7 in 2021 and 5 in 2020), but still far too low.

The other concern concerns the disproportionate weight of Île-de-France in the ecosystem. 82 companies out of 120 are thus based in the Paris region, compared to only six in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and five in Occitanie. However, Cédric O savors: “What we are seeing emerge is the renewal of the French industrial fabric. Start-ups are our life insurance. Long live the “Start-up Nation”!”