Nearly 10,000 individuals have subscribed to this fund, opened in October 2025 in a context of increased defense spending by NATO countries, said the public investment bank.
The public investment bank Bpifrance announced on Tuesday that it had reached the milestone of 100 million euros collected from individuals for its fund dedicated to the defense sector, eight months after its launch with great fanfare. Opened in October 2025 in a context of increased defense spending by NATO countries, this fund allows the general public to invest from 500 euros in French companies in the “defense industrial and technological base”.
Nearly 10,000 individuals have subscribed to this fund, underlined Bpifrance in a press release published on the occasion of the Eurosatory defense exhibition, near Paris. The public institution, one of whose missions is to finance French companies, is still ultimately aiming for a target size of 450 million euros for this fund, which has also benefited from a «love of 300 million euros» by Bpifrance.
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Bpifrance targets an annual internal profitability rate of 5%
According to the organization, the 100 million euros collected in eight months, notably through banks and insurers, are “in line with its projections”. The fund has already invested around 34 million euros in 19 companies in defense, space or in the field of development of quantum computers, details Bpifrance. Its objective is to ultimately support more than 500 unlisted companies, whether SMEs or mid-sized companies.
Except in exceptional cases, investments made by savers can only be recovered after 2030. Bpifrance is aiming for an annual internal rate of return of 5% for this fund, the sums invested in which are not guaranteed. This fund was announced in March 2025, during a meeting in Bercy with defense companies and investors aimed at facilitating the financing of the sector, in a context of threats of disengagement from the United States.
