A survey of 200 founders and executives across 27 EU member states reveals that 73% of respondents spend more time on regulatory compliance. Consequently, 36% of leaders have considered moving operations or hiring outside the EU due to the regulatory environment, up from 33% in 2022.
Stripe, which serves over two million European businesses and employs more than 1,000 people in the region, is urging policymakers to ensure the EU Inc. framework delivers practical administrative relief. The company suggests measuring the success of the reform by adoption rates and actual reductions in compliance burdens.
The EU Inc. proposal, introduced by the European Commission on March 18, 2026, aims to simplify company formation. While the Council of the European Union adopted a negotiating position on October 23, 2026, that includes 48-hour digital registration, it removed provisions for a central register and a dedicated insolvency framework.
Data from Stripe indicates that while the European tech sector is valued at nearly €3.6 trillion and supports over 4.6 million workers, the economic gap with the US has widened. Only 21% of survey respondents believe Europe can become a global technology leader within the next five years.
Smaller businesses face the highest hurdles, with 81% of leaders stating that current policymaking favors established corporations over early-stage startups. Among companies less than a year old, 39% cite the resources required for compliance as one of their top three business threats.
