Les Echos, January 16, 2025, by Adrien Lelièvre.
Crime Science Technology has brought C4 Industries, a company founded by Pascal Cagni, into its capital to replace Covestro, a German investor acquired by an Emirati group.
A new year and a new shareholder for Crime Science Technology. The deeptech company specializing in securing official documents has welcomed C4 Industries (founded by Pascal Cagni) as a shareholder, replacing Covestro, its German investor, which was taken over by the Emirati giant Adnoc in 2024.
This shift prompted the French startup to take action. “As a supplier of security elements for industrial players and national printing offices, we must remain as neutral as possible,” explains Cosimo Prete, a former forensic expert who founded Crime Science Technology in 2010. In his view, maintaining a European-majority cap table is the best way forward.
European capital, global ambitions
A strong European identity does not mean a lack of global ambitions. This fast-growing company—which has developed a security molecule embedded in ID cards, passports, and driver’s licenses—already provides its solution to Germany, Australia, Latvia, and even Mongolia.
Paradoxically, the company has yet to work with the French state. “No one is a prophet in their own country,” smiles Cosimo Prete, who still hopes to add France to his client list one day. The arrival of C4 Industries as an investor in this profitable deeptech startup “for the past four years” is just the first step. “We are engaged in broader discussions to secure additional resources. The goal is to continue accelerating our international expansion,” says Cosimo Prete.
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