Presentation

As internationalisation is a key component of our support for French entrepreneurs, we are committed to cooperating with counterparts across Europe and internationally:

Sharing experiences, learning about best practices and working with counterparts improves efficiency and innovation: our team facilitates information-sharing and partnerships and brings in different business departments, as needed, or our dedicated advisory team.

Through its Brussels office, Bpifrance plays an active role in the European public debate and dialogue with European institutions and counterparts.

A long-term investor and promotional institution, Bpifrance supports EU policies in favor of entrepreneurship and innovation, steering initiatives at the national and regional level:

• As a partner of the European Investment Bank and shareholder of the European Investment Fund supporting InvestEU
• As a partner of the Regional Authorities deploying EU Structural Funds
• Facilitating access to Horizon Europe for French SMEs

Who is it for?

In an increasingly connected world, our products and programmes offer various models for cooperating with foreign financial and institutional partners with the aim of supporting business through cooperation:

• Foreign banks that provide trade finance to French exporters can access our Export Credit Agency’s products to facilitate international trade.
  If the bank has a banking license in France, it can apply our guarantee programmes for lending to French SMEs.
• Export Credit Agencies can cooperate with us using several models.
• Innovation agencies can cooperate to promote open innovation and the international expansion of SMEs: financing of technology cooperation projects under joint calls for proposals, GlobalStars or on an ad hoc basis.
• Investors, including capital market investors, can partner with Bpifrance, which is regulated by the ECB, through:
  • Fixed-income investments, notably bond issuance programmes.
  • Investment partnerships with Sovereign Wealth Funds and other Investors
• Business support organisations can work with us to jointly accelerate SMEs and midcaps cross-border development, including with investors.
• Foreign buyers (public or private) of French capital goods or services can access loan facilities extended by Bpifrance

Our partners

Bpifrance is a partner of the European Investment Bank and Shareholder of the European Investment Fund and an active member of several European and International networks.

Networks:

• NEFI (Network of European Financial Institutions for SMEs) is a network of 19 national development banks in the EU Member States. Its mission is to promote the exchange of information and good practices between its members (product lines, European regulation, role of development banks in the implementation of European policies…)
• TAFTIE aims to establish collaboration in the implementation of national technology programs. The organization brings together 29 innovation agencies to exchange best practices mainly in the field of innovation in order to foster increased collaboration.
• EVFIN is a dialogue platform bringing together 16 of the leading VC investors in Europe. It contributes to public debate in the EU by exploring possible measures to support the development of VCs and by sharing best practices within its network and within the European institutions.
• ELTI brings together 30 long-term European investors, mostly public. Bpifrance and CDC are the French members. ELTI is a platform for dialogue aiming at influencing European institutions.
• The AECM represents the political interests of 48 guarantee societies towards the European institutions and deals mainly with issues related to the regulation of state aid for guarantee, European support programs, and prudential supervision. It also promotes the use of guarantees in Europe and the exchange of good practices in its network (eg schematic conceptualization of public guarantees, the development factors of family and traditional SMEs…).
• The aim of EUREKA is to strengthen European competitiveness and entrepreneurship by fostering collaboration, driven by innovation in Europe, between small and large companies, research institutes, and universities in 45 countries.
• Euromed Capital: Association that promotes exchanges and cooperation between different actors and partners in private equity on both sides of the Mediterranean area (investors, lawyers, consultants, financed companies, international public or private organizations involved in this field) and facilitates the development of their business flows between Europe and Africa.
• The Montreal Group is a global forum bringing together 10 Development Banks all with a focus on VSEs / SMEs / mid-caps.  Its purpose is to foster international cooperation and exchange of technical expertise among its members on topics and / or products such as loan guarantees, financing of intangible projects, access to international markets…The Montreal Group also organizes world-class Forums on key topics linked to companies’ development.
• The Berne Union (or formally « the International Union of Credit and Investment Insurers ») is an association that brings together the main public and private players in the field of export credit insurance and international investment insurance. The main objectives of this organization are the exchange of information on organizational and technical issues, the sharing of experience on product creation/evolution or buyer default and the creation of a solid network between its members.
• Institutional investors roundtable seeks to enrich relations between institutional investors and to help identify possible areas of cooperation. Since 2010, the IIR has become the largest community of institutional investors, bringing together operational managers.
• IFSWF (International forum of sovereign wealth funds) brings together more than thirty institutions, among which  sovereign wealth funds willing to strengthen their cooperation through the exchange of best practices and research in order to promote a better understanding of the activities of sovereign wealth funds.
• One planet sovereign wealth funds was founded by six major sovereign wealth funds wishing to integrate the objectives of the Paris Agreements into the dynamics of the One Planet Summit. It promotes a common understanding of principles, methodologies and indicators related to climate issues. They also call on investors to present public data on their low-carbon strategy.
• 20-20 investment association is a group of investors working together on investment opportunities in emerging markets. Members include pension funds, foundations, family offices, and asset managers.
• Invest Europe represents Europe’s private equity, venture capital and infrastructure industry.