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(Bloomberg) -- The French billionaire Dassault and Saade families are buying a stake in venture capital firm Founders Future as they step up tech investments.
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The clans are acquiring a 25% holding in the Paris-based investment company along with health insurer MACSF, according to a statement Monday that didn’t include financial details.
“Having French industry captains like the Dassault and the Saade families in our capital reinforces the confidence that investors and companies have in Founders Future,” said Marc Menasé, who founded the firm in 2018 to focus on early-stage tech startups. It currently has €300 million ($324 million) in assets under management.
The Dassaults and the Saades are among France’s wealthiest dynasties, with fortunes rooted in defense and shipping, respectively. Rodolphe Saade, the second-generation scion who heads closely held CMA CGM SA, the world’s third-largest container line, has moved quickly in recent years to use a pandemic windfall to diversify the group into industries like media and tech. The Saade family has a net worth of $31.7 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, and the Dassaults are worth $44 billion.
While the Dassault clan has been less acquisitive, they’re enjoying a wealth surge as Europe ramps up arms spending, including for the Rafale fighter jet.
Founders Future’s portfolio has a range of startups including data platform Databricks, store video-surveillance company Veesion and drink cube creator Waterdrop. The firm, which is targeting €1 billion in AUM by 2030, plans to open US offices by year-end and start a co-investment fund focused on the US market.
Tech appears to be shielded from the ongoing dispute over trade tariffs between the US and Europe, according to Menasé. As US President Donald Trump threatens import duties on goods, the venture capitalist is eyeing trans-Atlantic expansion in both directions by some of the startups in the portfolio.
“The idea is to help American companies expand to Europe, as the continent can sometimes seem complex at first glance,” he said.
The wealthy French families are investing in Founders Future through Financiere Dassault and CMA CGM Group, according to the statement. The investment firm is also aiming for private-banking partnerships.