According to a Tech.eu and Techstars survey released at the Web Summit technology fair that opened yesterday in Lisbon, investments in young startups in Europe have quadrupled over the last three years.

Funds invested amounted to €3.6 billion in the first half of 2018, compared with only €875 million at the beginning of 2015.

France has seen its largest number of deals signed since 2015, with 1,340 transactions recorded over the last three years, compared with 1,147 in the United Kingdom. Over the same period, France received 24% of investments, neck on neck with the United Kingdom on 24.6%. In the first half of 2018, France even surpassed the United Kingdom in terms of amounts raised.

The survey highlights France’s predilection for financing young startups and the change in mentality regarding entrepreneurship, with France doing everything possible to become a “startup nation”.