Interview, Conference Presentation
The Evolution of Europe’s Tech Landscape
- Technology firms in Europe are expected to adapt effectively to crisis conditions, driven by existing collaborative and mobile-ready software infrastructure.
- The current crisis is projected to accelerate three specific trends: the replacement of offline transactions with online ones, increased usage of collaboration software, and the digitalization of content.
- Horizontal e-commerce providers across Europe anticipate a business resurgence as consumer behavior shifts toward home delivery.
- Demand for collaboration platforms and data exchange tools is forecast to rise for both corporate and individual users.
- Consumption of digital content services, including streaming platforms like Netflix and Disney+, will increase further, generating significant benefits for public and private online gaming sectors.
- European online betting operators plan to develop mechanisms to facilitate wagering even during periods characterized by limited sports availability.
- The underweight status of technology within European public markets relative to the US is expected to shift due to listings of major companies such as Spotify, Farfetch, Delivery Hero, and Adyen.
- Public market access for technology will expand as more European companies choose to list on public exchanges.
- The count of European private technology unicorns is projected to grow from the current level of 98 or 99.
- Venture capital funding for European technology companies is expected to expand from a 2015 baseline of 10 billion to 30 billion in the previous year.
- Technologists with US or global experience are anticipated to continue returning to Europe to establish new ventures and transfer professional networks.
- Venture capital activity is forecast to sustain the capital influx required to support the growth of technology firms.
- European entrepreneurs are expected to prioritize achieving larger global valuations over selling out at ranges of 200 to 300 million.
- Global technology clients, particularly in Europe, are likely to remain highly engaged in active financing and strategic transactions.
- A third wave of deal activity centered on strategic transactions and business growth is expected to gain momentum in the coming months.
- Momentum to execute strategic transactions is projected to build during the current period, even if formal merger announcements have not yet occurred.