French state reorganises fund for SMEs

A new structure, FSI-Régions, will be created to help SMEs get access to funding quicker and more efficiently. It will be owned at 80% by the Caisse des Dépots, the remainder being controlled by public bank Oséo.

FSI-Régions will be granted €350m by the FSI and will look to invest up to €10m in local businesses - a strategy roughly similar to the UK's Business Growth Fund launched earlier this year. Benefiting from Oséo's network of agencies, the structure will be present across France.

In addition to FSI-Régions, Nicolas Sarkozy also announced the launch of the Innobio 2 MedTech vehicle. Funded by the FSI and the main French biopharmaceutical companies, it will back innovative biotech businesses. The FSI will commit up to €50m to the fund. Its predecessor, the €139m Innobio vehicle, is managed by CDC Entreprises.

Launched three years ago, the FSI has so far invested €5.9bn in French businesses, including €2.8bn in direct investments across 60 companies. The remainder was deployed by funds in which the FSI is acting as an investor.

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