Europe is rebuilding defence and security capability at a pace not seen in decades, creating significant opportunities – and new challenges – for investors and companies across the industry. What does it take to build and scale successful defence businesses, from early-stage and growth companies to established industry players? How do the investment case, capital needs and challenges change as companies mature, and what does it take to scale proven technologies and businesses across NATO markets? What roles should state funds, banks, venture capital and private equity play along the way? A panel of investors and industry experts from different parts of the capital landscape discusses what it takes for the Nordics and Europe to build world-class defence and security companies.

Frederik Oliver Busch
Partner & Co-founder, ETNA
Frederik Oliver Busch is Partner and co-founder of ETNA, a private equity firm dedicated to strengthening European resilience through investments in defence, cyber security and the protection of critical infrastructure. He spent more than twelve years as a Partner at CataCap, the Danish mid-market fund, before co-founding ETNA in 2025. He is based in Copenhagen

James Parkin
Founding Partner, Thorium Capital
James Parkin is Founding Partner of Thorium Capital, which provides growth capital and strategic advice to European defence technology companies at scale-up stage. He served 27 years in the Royal Navy, latterly as Rear Admiral and Director Develop / Controller of the Navy, acting as the Navy Board's design authority for future capability across shipbuilding, weapons, autonomy, AI and synthetic training. He is a senior adviser to Kraken Technology Group and Executive Chair of Navy Leaders.

Hans Beyer
Head of Defence, SEB
Hans Beyer is Head of Defence and Senior Banker at SEB, where he has spent nearly two decades. He was previously the bank's Chief Sustainability Officer, and before that led its Sustainability and Financial Institutions Group within CIB and, earlier, its global fixed income, derivatives and structured products business. He is based in Stockholm.