28e régime, un socle commun pour accélérer la scalabilité des startups européennes ?

European Commission's Startup & Scale-up Strategy

On Wed, Jun 2, 2025, the European Commission introduced its Startup & Scale-up Strategy aimed at fostering a conducive environment in the European Union for the establishment, financing, and growth of innovative businesses. Central to this initiative is the "28th Regime," a pan-European legal framework designed to simplify procedures, harmonize regulations, and enable startups to grow without leaving the continent.

European startups in the scale-up phase Investment funds active within the EU Public decision-makers and national regulators Major corporations seeking innovation through partnerships Technology Transfer Organizations (TTO) and entrepreneurial researchers

Europe produces more startups than the US but struggles to scale them. Late-stage financing lags 84% behind the US. Regulatory fragmentation hinders cross-border expansion. Public procurement is minimally open to innovation (only 10% of purchases). Low conversion of patents into businesses (only 1/3 are utilized). Goal: Build sustainable European tech champions.

Launch of the 28th Regime: Company creation possible within 48 hours across the EU. Creation of the Scale-up Fund managed by the European Innovation Council. Deployment of 13 AI Factories equipped with supercomputers. Introduction of a "European Business Wallet" to streamline processes. Unified framework for regulatory sandboxes and innovation impact testing. Reform of public procurement with pro-innovation clauses. Partial harmonization of stock options and cross-border telework. European study on legal barriers to startup restructuring.

The European Commission acknowledges that while Europe continues to produce startups, it fails to provide an environment conducive to their expansion. In 2024, late-stage investments in the EU were 84% lower than those in the US. The single market still exhibits significant national disparities, leading to complexities in business development. For startups wishing to establish themselves in multiple member states, administrative and regulatory obligations vary significantly.

The 28th Regime project aims to provide startups with a unified European framework to create and operate across the Union.

Access to customers remains a major challenge, with public procurement accounting for 17% to 19% of the EU's GDP, yet only 10% directed towards innovation. The private sector also sees limited success in partnerships between startups and large corporations, with less than 1% of collaboration projects leading to market deployment. This environment, characterized by long procurement cycles and high certification requirements, extends time-to-market for tech startups, directly impacting their cash flow and attractiveness to investors.

While European public research produces a significant number of patents, the capacity to transform them into economic assets remains low. In 2019, over 10% of patents filed at the European Office came from universities, yet only a third are effectively exploited. Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs) suffer from chronic underfunding, especially in Southern and Eastern Europe, where 85% have three or fewer staff members.

The European Commission proposes a roadmap structured around five priorities:

Integration of an innovation impact test, support for regulatory sandboxes, and implementation of the 28th Regime. Targeted late-stage financing

Creation of a Scale-up Fund managed by the European Innovation Council. Opening public markets and strengthening startup-corporate collaborations

Development of a GovTech Single Market, simplification of tenders, and inclusion of pro-innovation clauses. Talent mobilization

Launch of the EU Talent Pool, partial harmonization of stock option tax regimes, and a common framework for cross-border telework. Access to strategic data and infrastructures

Creation of 13 AI Factories with supercomputers to support the development of European AI models and the development of sectoral data spaces.

Implementation Timeline and Challenges

Several key proposals announced by the Commission are not expected to be formalized until 2026, while startups' needs are immediate. Among the main actions envisaged are:

Creation of the 28th Regime , a unified European legal framework aimed at enabling company creation across the Union in less than 48 hours. It would integrate fiscal, social, and insolvency law elements, aiming to lower the cost of entrepreneurial failure (Q1 2026). Launch of a "European Business Wallet" , providing a digital identity for all European economic operators to facilitate procedures and secure data transmission between companies and administrations (Q4 2025). Adoption of a European Innovation Act , introducing a common framework for regulatory sandboxes, including cross-border ones (Q1 2026). Establishment of a "voluntary Innovation Stress Test" , a tool to assess the impact of national legislation on innovation, proposed to member states (Q1 2026). Sectoral reforms , such as the EU Biotech Act and the Advanced Materials Act, to reduce regulatory burdens in strategic sectors (from 2025). Review of standardization regulations , aiming to accelerate processes and ease access for SMEs and startups (Q2 2026). European study on legal barriers to restructuring innovative companies , to document structural barriers to scaling (2026).

These initiatives, though ambitious, raise several questions. Their effective implementation is delayed to a horizon considered too distant by part of the ecosystem. Additionally, certain structural elements, such as the fiscal treatment of exits, mobilization of private savings towards innovation, or explicit preference for European tech in public procurement, remain underdefined.

France Digitale, supporting the 28th Regime initiative, cautions on these limitations, emphasizing the need for timely and concrete implementation of the strategy's principles in European public policies.

Beyond technical adjustments, the issue of economic strength is central. Europe possesses talent, research centers, and a dynamic entrepreneurial base, yet its companies struggle to grow on home soil. The 28th Regime could help European companies become more competitive against Chinese and American giants, unlocking growth potential and addressing economic and political sovereignty.

D’après FrenchWeb.