It comes amid a flurry of initiatives designed to invigorate France’s defence industrial base.

The French Directorate General of Armaments (DGA) is moving ahead with plans to create a Defence Investors Club (DIC) to help financiers access the defence sector.

Emmanuel Chiva, Chief Executive of the DGA, confirmed the creation of the DIC via a 23 June press release; however, it was first proposed during a cross-government event on 20 March.

The club aims to provide “long-term support” for private investors and debt providers which are looking to invest in the defence industrial and technological base (DITB), comprising 4,500 startups and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Around 80 investment and debt funds are already signed up, including those which already invest in defence and some “potential” new entrants, the announcement states.

The DGA is looking to familiarise new investors with defence, as it seeks to boost the DITB, with particular reference to SMEs and startups.

To this end, “each funder will be invited to sign a charter setting out the commitments it has made” as a partner of the DGA, whilst clarifying their relationship and sector-specific requirements.

The announcement highlights defence’s specific regulatory frameworks and export controls as areas which need to be clarified for investors seeking to move into the sector.

To facilitate this, the DIC will facilitate networking, face-to-face meetings, and site visits between industry and investors.

These meetings will be aligned with the “major industrial orientations” (priorities) of the DGA, it continues.

It is hoped that – by focusing on the accessibility of the defence sector for financiers – SMEs and startups will have greater access to the funds they need to scale and develop their innovations.

This is a key part of the DGA’s efforts to support and grow its 4,500-strong DITB.

Also in pursuit of that goal, just days earlier, the DGA announced measures to provide support and simplify processes for defence manufacturers press release.

The measures seek to make defence companies “more agile, more robust, and more competitive” through what it calls the “DGA Simplification” project.

In addition, France-based Tikehau Capital launched a private equity fund dedicated to defence in a bid to boost innovation in Europe on 17 June.

DSEI Gateway News is part of DSEI UK and the broader Clarion Defence portfolio. 
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