External newsletter February 2024 - N° 155

EDITO

Marine loans: the origin of Business Angels?

Dear Business Angels friends, dear readers,

Since the dawn of time, mankind has sought to discover new horizons and new techniques through the exchange of ideas and goods: trade was born. The advent of money represented a major step forward in trade, since it was possible to put a value on the object of negotiation, whether it was a consumer good, a durable good or a service.

But when did we start investing in innovation? With the risk of failure? Commerce has developed as a vector for innovation, well-being and progress. And a source of wealth for those who practiced it. With the spread of trade, the profession of banker was quick to emerge and take shape. The Code of Hammurabi, dating from around 1750 BC, bears witness to this.

Local trade financed by these bankers enabled the creation of wealth. However, the quest for disruptive innovation led merchants to venture on increasingly distant expeditions to trade with distant peoples. Evidence from ancient Greece dating back to the 4th century B.C. tells us that entrepreneurs who had set up offshore companies in various trading posts around the Mediterranean offered to finance these expeditions. To this end, they resorted to maritime loans. Bankers did not generally engage in this type of lending, due to their lack of experience in maritime matters and the high risks involved. This type of financing was provided by citizens who got together and lent money to make an investment that would enable the expedition. Most of the time, the borrower was a foreigner from a city with a relationship of trust with the host city. Obtaining a loan therefore presupposed a relationship of honor and trust (Fides for the Romans or Pistis for the Greeks).

From the outset, an adventure loan was subject to a written contract, concluded in the presence of witnesses who could be citizens or foreigners, and deposited with a third party, either a private individual or a banker. The interest rate charged was proportional to the risk, frequently rising to 20%, and even reaching 30% in Rome. Lenders were very rational in assessing the risks involved in setting the rate of return on their capital. If the ship sank, the capital was lost.

Venture capital was born.

Today's Business Angels are the heirs of those citizens who made part of their wealth available for these adventurous loans that bankers were reluctant to grant for lack of sufficient guarantees.

The model has changed little over the centuries: in ancient times, those who granted the loan waited for the ship to return to recover their money; we, the Business Angels, climb aboard and take part in the adventure.

Best regards,

Paul Leondaridis,

Chairman of Business Angels des Grandes Écoles.

INTERVIEW

Olivier Lebas, Chairman

"Losonnante

1) Could you introduce yourself and describe the "Losonnante" company?

I'm Olivier Lebas, co-founder of the Losonnante company. We've designed a system that lets you listen to sound using your body. By bone conduction, the sound passes from the elbows to the hands, which are then placed over the ears, making it possible to use headphones without the need for additional accessories. It's a whole new way of listening to sound, with the emphasis on emotion and feeling. You're totally immersed, bathed in sound vibrations.

We propose our system to public places, such as museums and amusement parks.

2) How did the project come about? How did you meet your co-founder?

The project originated in two CNRS laboratories in Grenoble: PACTE and CRESSON. It's a use innovation that was then taken up by SATT Linksium, Grenoble's technology transfer and start-up support structure. During the project's incubation phase at Linksium, I was looking for a partner with skills that would complement my profile in marketing and finance. That's how I met Fabien Rolland, with whom I created Losonnante. We were also joined by Jérôme Maisonnasse, a doctor in cognitive sciences, who is in charge of R&D.

3) How do Losonnante audio terminals work in practice?

It's a box with two lozenges that send out sound vibrations. By resting our elbows on these pads and putting our hands over our ears, we recover the sounds that travel through the bones to our inner ear. Our system ensures maximum sound power in solids while minimizing sound diffusion in the air. It's the opposite of a loudspeaker with a membrane that will displace air to diffuse throughout the space. We use solids as sound diffusion vectors. The result is audio systems that are easy to use and quiet for other users.

4) Why did you turn to Business Angels and the BADGE network?

We wanted to benefit from the experience and expertise of Business Angels to develop our project and help us with commercial aspects and industrialization issues. As soon as we submitted our application, the feedback we received from members of the BADGE club enabled us to move forward and ask ourselves the right questions. It's a very valuable human accompaniment. We're delighted to have BADGE as a partner.

5) Following the successful completion of your fund-raising, what are your ambitions for the coming years?

We want to accelerate our sales development in France by hiring a sales team. We're going to establish ourselves in the events and urban planning markets. We're also going to enhance our body-based listening offering with a bone conduction listening seat. Our ambition is to equip 500 sites with Losonnante products within 5 years.

UPCOMING EVENTS

>>> PROJECT PRESENTATIONS

Monthly meetings with presentations of innovative fund-raising projects led by Philippe Pernot, Vice-Chairman in charge of project appraisal.

Members only.
Non-members, ask for your invitation.

PRACTICAL INFO

Read our latest press releases

HYMAG'IN

News from our funded startups

Start-up Kinvent raises €16 million to sell its solutions

in the United States

Start-up KINVENT, Europe's leading provider of connected physiotherapy solutions, has announced a €16 million investment in its third round of financing. This investment will enable the company to enter a new phase of acceleration, including the conquest of the US market in 2024, the intensification of R&D projects, and an ambitious external expansion aimed at establishing its position as world leader in connected solutions for physiotherapy. To support KINVENT in this important stage of its development, French private equity firm Eurazeo is joining the company's management team.

Start-ups Geosophy and Caeli Energie, winners of the second Morning and Nexity gas pedal promotion

Morning and Nexity, in collaboration with Standard Deviation, unveil the launch of their new gas pedal promotion. Initiated in 2023, the Morning x Nexity Accelerator aims to promote and develop sustainable building solutions. Start-ups Geosophy and Caeli Energie are the winners of this call for projects, alongside three other companies: A-Grid, Wind my roof and Lite. Over the coming months, the winners will benefit from tailor-made support from Standard Deviation's teams and a network of mentors and experts, enabling them to question and optimize their solutions.

Our startups are recruiting

Great projects to invest in within our network

En Carta Diagnostics is a company that develops, produces and markets high-precision paper-based diagnostics. Based on the latest innovations in synthetic biology, 10 years of R&D and 6 patents (Arizona State and Harvard), the start-up's diagnostics technology platform fills the gap between rapid but inaccurate antigenic tests and high-performance but cumbersome molecular diagnostics. The company's first commercial product meets a strong need in a niche market in developed countries: early detection of Lyme disease.

Omini offers a portable device for bedside blood testing. Its patented sensor-based technology enables near-patient testing and self-testing, while keeping providers informed every step of the way. Combining multi-sensor blood test strips, a portable connected reader and a clinical and biological data transmission application, this unique technology represents a giant step forward for precision medicine and a powerful catalyst in the transition to preventive care.

Hillo is an AI-based digital healthcare startup that is set to revolutionize the way diabetic patients are cared for. Its patented technology is based on an AI capable of predicting future variations in blood sugar levels. The project has received numerous awards and is supported by patient associations, health insurance companies and world-renowned doctors. Its main aim is to provide an intelligent, personalized solution to help patients better manage their pathology, thereby reducing their stress levels on a daily basis.

SpaceDreams is the architect of spaceports. The company develops ground facilities for launchers. Today, each launcher develops its own resources. A launcher for a launch pad and a launch pad for a launcher, as if each aircraft had its own airport. Start-up is developing the NuPad, the first interoperable, modular and mobile launch pad, and its digital twin, the TwinPad. It cuts the captive link between launchers and launch pads. It cuts investment and operating costs in half, and consolidates customer business.

Winalist is a digital platform for selecting, highlighting and booking the best wine-related activities in Europe. Thanks to Winalist, travelers from all over the world can easily book a visit to the cellars of Champagne Veuve Clicquot, a tour of Châteaux Giscours in Bordeaux, a wine workshop in Italy, a tasting in Portugal's Douro Valley or a hot-air balloon flight over the vineyards of Château de Pommard in Burgundy.

Founded in 2019, OPUS Aerospace is a French start-up that aims to develop launch solutions dedicated to small satellites to accelerate space exploration. Through STERNE, its range of reusable launchers, it will enable payloads of up to 300 kg to be placed into precise orbit on the desired date. Today, the company is developing its first suborbital rocket, named "Mesange", which will be launched to embark its technologies & its first customers.

VitiVisio designs and develops innovative solutions for precision viticulture, combining sensors and AI to enable winegrowers to accelerate the transition to more efficient and environmentally-friendly viticulture. VitiVisio develops Decision Support Tools (DST) based on the analysis of data collected in the vineyard down to the very last foot, using cutting-edge optical sensors and a SaaS interface. In this way, the company meets the needs of winegrowers to optimize harvesting, improve productivity and reduce pesticide use. Today, VitiVisio places its technological expertise at the service of vineyards the world over to accelerate the ecological transition and combat the effects of climate change.

Rheonova markets viscosity measurement services and instruments. The company's flagship product, Rheomuco, is a medical diagnostic device used to quantify the viscosity of bronchial mucus for patients suffering from chronic muco-obstructive respiratory diseases: chronic bronchitis (COPD), severe asthma, cystic fibrosis, bronchiectasis.

Emoface is an EdTech/MedTech startup, founded in 2020 in Grenoble, France. The startup is the result of an R&D project with Grenoble Alpes University and INRIA and is developing a new digital therapy based on 3D avatars that mimic emotions in real time. EMOFACE provides a digital therapy solution for the treatment of social interaction difficulties for populations with learning disabilities, such as autism. The solution involves a new learning methodology based on interaction with data-driven emotional 3D avatars.

Would you like to find out more?

NETWORK AND PARTNERS

Replay webinar France Angels, Finance Act 2024, support for entrepreneurs

On Wednesday February 7,France Angels organized a webinar on the 2024 changes in tax and legal measures for start-ups (CIR, CII, BSPCE, JEIC/JEIR, IPbox...), with an introduction by Paul Midy, Member of Parliament for Paris Saclay. This webinar was dedicated to entrepreneurs and business angels wishing to learn more about the new provisions for business aid, enacted by the application of the 2024 Finance Law on January 1.

Access password: t8#NnhJR

Please do not broadcast this replay on social networks.

Read below the presentation of tax measures to promote innovation for start-ups by Philippe Makowski, Manager of In Extenso Innovation Croissance, and the summary of tax and legal measures by Paul Midy, Member of Parliament for Paris-Saclay.

Viva Technology 2024: Call for applications from innovative startups and SMEs in theParis Region

The Paris Region Chamber of Commerce and Industry is launching a call for applications for Viva Technology 2024. This initiative is aimed at all innovative start-ups and SMEs based in the Paris Region. The aim is to give them the opportunity to showcase their innovations at the world's biggest tech fair, to be held from May 22 to 25.

Every year, the Paris Ile-de-France CCI welcomes around 30 start-ups and SMEs from the Paris region to its stand at VivaTech, to raise their profile and accelerate their growth.

Companies can apply in the following stages:

• Submission of applications on the dedicated platform from January 15 to February 29
• Pre-selection of 60 applications
• Pitch of selected companies to a panel of judges on March 27 and 29

At the end of the call for applications, 32 startups, innovative SMEs and projects by students or alumni of CCI Paris Ile-de-France schools will be selected to benefit from :

• a digital space on the Viva Technology web platform to present their activities,
• a privileged position on the CCI Paris Ile-de-France stand for one day
• 4 exhibitor passes for the team.
  

>>> EDITORIAL COMMITTEE
Paul Leondaridis, President / Yannis Sahraoui, Managing Director
Dimitri Lionel A.Omgba, Communications Manager [Send your subject to the editor]

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