France

In this episode, we sit down with Mathieu Lefebvre, the co-founder and CEO of Waga Energy, a French clean energy company that listed on Euronext Paris in October 2021 in a €126 million IPO. Only six years after founding the company, Mathieu and his co-founders chose the public markets to fund Waga's international expansion. Mathieu and his team led the company through volatile markets, higher inflation, a difficult €55 million follow-on capital raise in 2024, and ultimately to a take-private by EQT, announced in June 2025. Waga Energy has developed a unique technology, the Wagabox, that converts landfill gas into renewable natural gas, turning a major source of greenhouse gas emissions into a usable energy source that is injected directly into the local gas grid. The business is capital intensive but with high visibility: Waga invests in, owns and operates its units under 15 to 20 year contracts with landfill operators and gas utilities. From a French startup, the company has grown into a global player with 55 projects today across seven countries in Europe, North America and Latin America. With Mathieu, we discuss why a young company chose to list so early, the realities of being a small cap in a turbulent equity market — including a forced exit from the MSCI small and mid cap index that triggered a sharp share price correction just before the 2024 capital raise, and ultimately the strategic decision to return to private ownership with EQT. Disclaimer: The discussion in this episode is not financial advice, nor an investment recommendation, nor a solicitation to buy or sell any financial instruments or an offer for financial services or any other transaction. The information contained in the recording has no contractual value and is intended for informational purposes only. Amundsen Investment Management and the participants in this podcast may have holdings in the companies being discussed. Any views expressed are those of the guests only, and not of Amundsen Investment Management.

Criteo, a French adtech company, listed on Nasdaq in 2013. Edouard Lassalle joined in 2012 to prepare the company for the IPO, and later served as head of Investor Relations for the company until 2022. One of the topics that comes up at an early stage during IPO preparation is the choice of listing location. In earlier episodes, we have heard from tech executives at Wise, DeliveryHero, OVHCloud and Exclusive Networks why they decided to list in Europe. Today, we look back at the 2013 US IPO of Criteo. Criteo was founded in 2005 and backed by leading VC investors such as Elaia, Index Ventures and Bessemer, with a global customer base. In 2013, the company was listed on Nasdaq, raising $280mn to fund its growth. Edouard Lassalle joined the company in 2012 to prepare the company for the IPO, and later served as head of Investor Relations for the company until 2022. Edouard shares with us his list of pros and cons of a US vs European listing for a European tech company, as well as considerations around the different characteristics of US and European markets, and the impact is has on the company. If you have feedback, or there are any topics you would like us to cover on the show, please reach out at contact@ipostories.com Disclaimer: this discussion is not financial advice, nor an investment recommendation, nor a solicitation to buy or sell any financial instruments, or an offer for financial services or any other transaction. The information contained in the recording have no contractual value and are destined for an informational purpose only. Amundsen Investment Management and the participants on this podcast may have holdings in the companies being discussed.

Stéphane Boujnah is the CEO of Euronext, the largest European stock exchange, managing the bourses of Amsterdam, Brussels, Dublin, Lisbon, Oslo, Paris and Milan. Stephane has been the CEO for the last 8 years, leading an M&A drive that saw the company acquiring and integrating the Irish stock exchange in 2018, Oslo stock exchange in 2019 and Borsa Italiana in 2021. With Stéphane, we go back to the origins of stock markets to discuss why they are the natural home for ambitious growth companies, the reforms needed to spur more equity investment in Europe, and the importance of trust when you are building a track record as a listed company CEO. If you have feedback, or there are any topics you would like us to cover on the show, please reach out at contact@ipostories.com Disclaimer: this discussion is not financial advice, nor an investment recommendation, nor a solicitation to buy or sell any financial instruments, or an offer for financial services or any other transaction. The information contained in the recording have no contractual value and are destined for an informational purpose only. Amundsen Investment Management and the participants on this podcast may have holdings in the companies being discussed.

Française des Jeux, coming out of state ownership, was one of the largest and most successful IPOs over the last 5 years, raising $2bn for the French state and helping revive retail interest in IPOs. With Claire Vernet-Garnier, who was Head of the Finance Division at the French Government Shareholding Agency (APE) at the time, we go through the important choices around this successful IPO, and the characteristics of the government as a long-term shareholder in public markets. If you have feedback, or there are any topics you would like us to cover on the show, please reach out at contact@ipostories.com Disclaimer: this discussion is not financial advice, nor an investment recommendation, nor a solicitation to buy or sell any financial instruments, or an offer for financial services or any other transaction. The information contained in the recording have no contractual value and are destined for an informational purpose only. Amundsen Investment Management and the participants on this podcast may have holdings in the companies being discussed.

Yann Leca was the CFO of OVHCloud, a cloud computing company, from 2019 to 2022 and led the company to its IPO in October 2021 - one of the largest and most succesful tech IPOs in Europe in 2021. OVHCloud, founded by Octava Klaba more than 20 years ago, is both founder-led and with two strong private equity backers, KKR and Towerbrook. Yann shares his experience defining the strategy of the company and preparing the company for a successful listing - as well as the early life of a newly listed company. If you have feedback, or there are any topics you would like us to cover on the show, please reach out at contact@ipostories.com Disclaimer: this discussion is not financial advice, nor an investment recommendation, nor a sollicitation to buy or sell any financial instruments, or an offer for financial services or any other transaction. The information contained in the recording have no contractual value and are destined for an informational purposes only. Amundsen Investment Management and the participants on this podcast may have holdings in the companies being discussed.

In this episode, we discuss the IPO of Exclusive Networks, a global distributor of cybersecurity solutions, with Jesper Trolle, its CEO since September 2020. Jesper was hired to join Exclusive in the middle of covid-19, and led the company to its successful IPO on Euronext Paris a year after joining.Exclusive Networks was owned by Permira’s private equity fund before the IPO, and we discuss the process of listing a tech company backed by a PE sponsor, the choice of listing location, the impact of being listed on your relationships with your teams, and the interaction with public market investors. If you have feedback, or there are any topics you would like us to cover on the show, please reach out at contact@ipostories.com Disclaimer: this discussion is not financial advice, nor an investment recommendation, nor a sollicitation to buy or sell any financial instruments, or an offer for financial services or any other transaction. The information contained in the recording have no contractual value and are destined for an informational purposes only. Amundsen Investment Management and the participants on this podcast may have holdings in the companies being discussed.