AMSTERDAM, Dec. 7, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Today Atomico, a
leading international investment firm that focuses on helping
disruptive technology companies scale globally, announced that
the Netherlands is emerging as
Europe's hottest tech hub in its
annual State of European Tech 2021 report. Techleap.nl, a
non-profit organisation, funded by the Dutch Ministry of Economic
Affairs and Climate Policy, helping to quantify and accelerate the
tech ecosystem of the Netherlands,
welcomes the report and recognises the prosperity and maturity of
the ecosystem. However, there are still clear areas for improvement
in the Netherlands, such as deep
tech financing, the talent pool and the major gaps in early stage
funding.
Dutch tech is a thriving industry; The
Netherlands is home to Europe's biggest tech companies, such as
Adyen, ASML, Just Eat Takeaway and Mollie, and is taking the fourth
position globally by total market cap of public tech companies. It
has many more startups per 1 million population than the European
average, and is in the top 5 European hubs by number of $1B+
startups. This is the result of close cooperation of Dutch founders
and partners in the ecosystem, however enough work still remains to
be done to reach full potential.
- Compared to other European startup ecosystems, the Netherlands is lagging behind in deep tech
investments. Although the
Netherlands ranks highly in global scientific research, more
efforts need to be made to accelerate innovation, knowledge
transfer from universities, knowledge institutions to spin-offs or
startups.
- Access to talent is one of the major issues for Dutch startups.
The global tech ecosystem is competitive, and companies in
the Netherlands are fighting a
constant battle to attract and retain top talent. The Netherlands should be made more attractive
to national and international talent and adopt competitive
fiscal rules for share options.
- Despite reaching new heights in investments, early stage deals
in the Netherlands have been
constantly decreasing, resulting in a funding gap for startups in
the earliest, most risky phase of their business, leaving room for
angel investors to step in.
Maurice van Tilburg, Managing
Director Techleap.nl said: "After years of building the tech
ecosystem with all stakeholders, we are very happy with the overall
state of Dutch tech, but we have to keep an eye on the hurdles as
well. We could claim the position of being a leading ecosystem
because there are so many companies that have the chance to be very
successful here. If we want to remain relevant as a nation and
competitive as an economy, full commitment to the challenges in
technological development is vital."
Notes to Editors
The State of European Tech: 2021 edition will be available
at www.stateofeuropeantech.com
About Techleap.nl
Techleap.nl is a non-profit organisation, funded by the Ministry
of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy, helping to quantify and
accelerate the tech-ecosystem of the
Netherlands. Techleap.nl creates an optimal environment for
technology companies to scale with programs and initiatives that
improve access to capital, market and talent. Techleap.nl is led by
Special Envoy, His Royal Highness Prince Constantijn van
Oranje.
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SOURCE Techleap.nl