Financing Europe’s defence future: reflections from the Defence Investment Forum
The inaugural Defence Investment Forum, held on 14 October as part of Luxembourg Venture Days, brought together more than 200 participants from the investment community, industry, public institutions and the wider defence ecosystem.
The programme featured Luxembourg’s Minister of Defence, Yuriko Backes; NATO Assistant Secretary General for Defence Policy and Planning, Zamir Nicholas Catsaras; and Guillaume de la Brosse, Head of Unit for Defence Policy and Innovation at the European Commission.
Investment perspectives came from speakers including Thomas Fouquet of Karista, Nicholas Nelson of Archangel Ventures, Jeremy Teboul of OTB Ventures and David Dana of Dana & Co Ventures. The institutional discussions included Ari Kristinn Jónsson, President of the NATO Innovation Fund; Patric Gresko of the European Investment Fund; Hristo Stoykov, Director of the European Investment Bank’s Security and Defence Office; Robert Murray of the DSRB; and Christian Tock of Luxembourg’s Ministry of the Economy.
Moving from investment momentum to industrial scale:
A central message was that Europe’s defence investment ecosystem is entering a new phase. Investment momentum must continue, but companies need greater financial firepower, particularly beyond Series A, to scale products, manufacturing capacity and deployment.
The discussions also highlighted the importance of bringing more investors and expertise from AI, robotics, advanced manufacturing and space into the defence ecosystem. Alongside access to capital, companies need a stronger focus on product readiness and real-world adoption.
The participating funds’ investments in more than 30 companies illustrated the growing depth of Europe’s defence investment community. The next challenge is to ensure that promising companies can access the financing and commercial opportunities needed to grow.
Accelerating innovation and adoption:
Guillaume de la Brosse’s keynote addressed financing Europe’s defence readiness and the European Commission’s support instruments.
One initiative highlighted was the EU’s AGILE programme, intended to accelerate defence innovation and help relevant solutions reach armed forces within one to two years. AGILE envisages support of €1–5 million per project to accelerate the development, testing and deployment of innovative solutions addressing European defence needs.
For such initiatives to deliver operational value, support must extend to testing campaigns and validation. Companies need practical pathways from promising technology to products that defence customers can confidently adopt.
Building a European market for defence innovation:
Another recurring theme was the need to build a stronger pipeline of companies ready to supply defence ministries. This requires closer cooperation between governments, investors and industry, alongside more coordinated procurement.
Member States acting individually cannot generate all the scale Europe needs. Joint procurement involving several countries could help create a stronger European market for defence innovation, giving companies clearer demand signals and greater confidence to invest in growth.
Connecting capabilities across sectors:
Circular economy solutions, space and advanced manufacturing were highlighted as relevant areas for Europe’s future competitiveness and resilience.
Investment and procurement frameworks also need to reflect European security priorities, including trusted supply chains and cooperation with suppliers from NATO and other trusted partner countries.
Turning capital into capability:
Europe has considerable talent, technology and investment capacity, but these strengths need to connect more effectively. Investors can help companies scale, public institutions can establish clearer routes to procurement, and defence ministries can provide the testing and deployment opportunities needed to turn innovation into operational capability.
For Pivotas, these discussions reinforce the importance of connecting sector expertise, appropriate financing and commercial opportunities to support the growth of Europe’s defence and dual-use businesses.
The Defence Investment Forum provided a valuable platform for advancing those connections and developing partnerships across the European defence investment community.
by Sabriba Alam
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