EUVC Live at GoWest | The Case for a United European LP Strategy feat. Philippe Tibi, Chris Elphick, Christina Brinck, Daniel Keiper-Knorr, Joe Schorge, Michiel Scheffer, Adem Yakisirer and Mia Grosen
Introduced by our very own Andreas Munk Holm, this EUVC Live at GoWest session brings together policymakers, institutional investors, GPs, corporates, and public capital leaders around one defining question: How does Europe mobilise its own capital to secure its technological future? Across every session, one theme emerges repeatedly: Europe does not lack talent. It does not lack innovation. It does not lack savings. It lacks coordination. In The Case for a United European LP Strategy, Philippe Tibi (The Tibi Initiative; French Ministry for the Economy, Finance and Recovery; Professor at École Polytechnique Paris) lays out the macro argument. Europe holds more than €35 trillion in household assets, yet its top companies often scale under foreign ownership. The problem is not capital scarcity — it is capital allocation. Pension funds and insurers must treat venture and technology as core asset classes — for returns and sovereignty. In The Path to a United European LP Strategy, Chris Elphick (BVCA) and Philippe Tibi explore why mobilisation is slow: regulatory conservatism, fragmented mandates, cultural risk aversion, and weak cross-border coordination. Institutional allocations to venture remain near zero in many countries. Reform is structural, not optional. Succeeding in Venture as a Long-Term Capital Investor shifts from policy to portfolio construction. Christina Brinck (Volvo Group VC), Daniel Keiper-Knorr (Speedinvest), and Joe Schorge (Isomer) examine how to underwrite European venture in a fragmented but maturing ecosystem. Themes include diversification across cycles, power-law return dynamics, patience as structural advantage, and strategic alignment with industrial direction. Venture is positioned not as optional exposure — but as infrastructure for technological transformation. Public capital enters the equation in The Role of Public Capital in European Venture Outcomes, where Michiel Scheffer (European Innovation Council) explains how the EIC funds deep tech, underserved geographies, and growth-stage gaps. Public capital, he argues, is not distortion — it is market completion. In Catalyst or Competitor? Adem Yakisirer (European Investment Fund) outlines how EIF has backed more than 1,600 fund managers, building a financing continuum from pre-seed to pre-IPO. In a candid exchange with Mia Grosen (Venture Partner, SuperSeed) moderated by Andreas, the tension surfaces: Is Europe becoming too dependent on public anchors? Does institutional backing signal quality or complacency? From LP mobilisation to cross-border collaboration, one message is clear: If Europe wants technological sovereignty and long-term competitiveness, capital must move with intent, alignment, and scale. What’s covered: 02:30 Europe’s savings paradox — why the issue is allocation, not scarcity 05:00 Philippe Tibi — €35T in household assets and the case for a united European LP strategy 10:30 Venture as sovereignty infrastructure — why pensions and insurers must move 15:30 Chris Elphick + Tibi — the real blockers: regulation, mandates, culture, coordination 22:30 Why allocations stay near zero — institutional inertia across Europe 27:30 Christina Brinck — underwriting venture across cycles 33:00 Daniel Keiper-Knorr — power-law returns, patience, and portfolio construction 38:00 Joe Schorge — long-term capital behaviour and strategic alignment 43:00 Michiel Scheffer — the EIC as market completion in deep tech and underserved geographies 49:00 Growth-stage gaps — why public capital anchors where private markets hesitate 53:30 Adem Yakışırer — EIF’s role: 1,600+ managers backed from pre-seed to pre-IPO 58:30 Mia Grosen — dependency vs signal: when public anchoring becomes a crutch 1:02:30 Final takeaway — Europe’s challenge is coordination: capital must move with scale and intent
