Quantum computing belongs to this rare category of technologies whose scientific promise precedes industrial maturity by several years, sometimes several decades. For the companies that engage in this, the question is not only technological. It is also financial: how to finance long innovation cycles, complex infrastructures and very specialized research teams?
It is in this context that Pasqal, one of the main European quantum computing startups, announces a financial operation of at least 340 million euros, combining private fundraising and convertible financing. The operation constitutes a first step towards a dual listing project on Nasdaq and Euronext Paris, planned from 2026.
The transaction is part of a merger involving the SPAC Bleichroeder Acquisition Corp. II, valuing the company at $2 billion (around 1.7 billion euros). Bleichroeder is headed by Frenchman Michel Combes.
An industry where capital needs exceed risk capital
The quantum computing industry requires investments that are intensifying as the technology begins to enter an industrialization phase.
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Building a quantum computer indeed involves sophisticated experimental infrastructures, complex optical or cryogenic equipment, scientific teams from fundamental physics and a capacity to transform these experimental systems into machines that can be used by companies.
In his press release, Pasqal specifies that the funds raised, as well as the capital that could be provided during the IPO, will be “mainly invested in the company’s infrastructures in France in order to accelerate research and development and strengthen its industrial capacities”.
A strong signal for a sector which until recently raised questions about its sustainability. Quantum companies are no longer just scientific projects. They become industrial structures requiring investments comparable to those observed in semiconductors or biotechnology.
Industrializing quantum from France
The announced investments should notably support the expansion of Pasqal’s activities in Palaiseauin Essonne, where its headquarters are located.
The company plans in particular:
- to double its production capacity within twenty-four months,
- to increase its workforce by around 20%, with 50 additional recruitments within eighteen months,
- to intensify its research efforts to develop a fault-tolerant quantum computer by the end of the decade.
These objectives reflect the ambition to take a decisive step, namely to move from the scientific prototype to a machine capable of performing complex calculations on a large scale.
A coalition of industrial and institutional investors
The financing round brings together a group of investors that reflects the growing interest of large companies and public institutions in quantum technologies.
New investors include Quanta Computer, LG Electronics and CMA CGM, as well as the Parkway fund. Several historic investors are also renewing their support, including European Innovation Council Fund, Temasek, Saudi Aramco Entrepreneurship Ventures and ISAI. The public bank Bpifrance, shareholder since 2021, for its part confirms its long-term commitment and maintains its presence in the governance of the company.
Neutral atoms, a unique technological approach
Founded in 2019 by Georges-Olivier Reymond, Alain Aspect and Christophe Jurczak, Pasqal develops a quantum computing architecture based on neutral atoms manipulated by laser. This approach constitutes one of the major technological avenues explored in the sector.
Other companies have made different choices: IBM and Google work primarily on superconducting qubits, while IonQ relies on trapped ion technology. The method used by Pasqal has some theoretical advantages in terms of scalability and modularity, but it is still in the development phase.
A market in structuring
With more than 275 employees, more than 25 industrial clients and more than $300 million in cumulative funding, Pasqal is now among the companies seeking to transform quantum research into an exploitable technological platform.
Its clients include OVHcloud, Thales, CMA CGM, NVIDIA and Sumitomo. The company is also part of the IBM Quantum Network, an international consortium dedicated to the development of quantum applications.
In this context, access to financial markets could play a decisive role. Quantum companies will have to finance research, production and calculation infrastructures over several years, in an environment where commercial revenues are still emerging.
The transaction requires approval from Bleichroeder Acquisition Corp. shareholders. II as well as regulatory authorities, including review by the US Securities and Exchange Commission of the Form F-4 registration statement, and approval of the listing by Nasdaq.
