EU Startups & Scale-Ups: The Key to Economicโ Resilience, New โคStudy Finds
Table of Contents
By Priyashah | August 26, 2025
(world-today-news.com) – As austria and the wider European Union grapple with lingering economicโ fallout from theโฃ COVID-19 pandemic and global trade uncertainties, a new study from sageโข highlights a critical engine for future prosperity:โค startups and scale-ups. The report, titled “scaling for Growth – Unlocking the Potentialโ of Europe’sโข Startups and Scale-ups,” reveals these dynamic companies are not just creating jobs, but areโค vital for bolsteringโข economic โฃresilience and driving innovation across the continent.
Austria, in particular, continues to face economic headwinds. The nation’s GDP hasn’t fully recovered to pre-2020 โคlevels, and isโฃ furtherโข challenged โby fluctuating global trade โpolicies, asโฃ previously reported by LEADERSNET.These challenges underscore the urgency for innovative solutions and โคa renewed focus on fostering growth within the EU.
Rapid Growth & Meaningful Potential
The Sage study,based on data from over 7,500 startups and scale-ups acrossโค 15 EU memberโค states (with comparative data from โthe US,UK,and Canada),paints a compelling picture. โEuropean scale-ups are growing โฃat โขan average rate of 38%โข perโ year – nearly twice the growth โคbenchmark set โคby the โOECD.
However,realizing thisโค potential requiresโค addressing key obstacles. โThe study identifies โขfour crucial factors impacting the successโ of European scale-ups:
Digitalโฃ Adoption: โขWhile heavily reliant on digitalโ tools,โฃ access and โacceptance vary, especially among newer generation companies. Gaps inโ accessโค to โtechnologiesโฃ like electronic accounting, โopen-finance tools, and integrated AIโฃ systems areโ hindering productivity and cross-border expansion.
Cross-Border trade: โค A streamlined internal market is essential, but regulatory fragmentation, lackโ of โคharmonization,โ andโ complex compliance regulations are holding companies back.
access to Financial Resources: โค While โฃmost scale-upsโค secure external โขcapital, next-generation companies struggle to move beyond early-stage financing. โฃOnyl 5% of โglobal risk capital investmentsโค currently flow into the EU, highlighting theโ need โคfor โคincreased โprivate capital development. Access to Talent: A โshortage of skilled workers in digitization, AI, and technical fields remains a significant challenge across the continent. 55% of surveyedโ scale-ups citedโ skills shortagesโ as a major โขobstacle to growth.
Digital Tools are Core to Success
The study also reveals a high adoption โrateโ ofโข Enterprise Resource Planning โ(ERP) systems – software that integrates and automates business processes – โamong European scale-ups, with 95% currently utilizing them. Furthermore, 91% of companies surveyed confirmedโ that digital tools are crucial forโ growth, emphasizing the