Newnex Europe Newsletter

19 Mar 2024

Welcome to our fortnightly newsletter. We've tracked $1.3bn+ fundraisings this fortnight. We're adding new meaningful and interesting topics we read this fortnight that we hope to add more interesting topics, interviews and trends in the coming weeks.

Interesting topics we read:

Databricks partners' with MistralAI: Databricks customers can access native Mistral models through the Databricks Marketplace. 

https://www.newnex.io/discussions/355

How niche markets are bigger opportunities than VCs think. We know adjacent markets can expand with an initial engaged customer base. Here is a good read:

https://jaydimonte.substack.com/p/unlocking-hidden-value-how-niche

Learn about EU's new tax - CBAM (Carbon Border Adjusted Mechanism):

https://www.ft.com/content/b1c2055c-15ec-4f29-9227-1a4bfa21bcea

Number of Family Offices have tripled since 2019, according to Prequin.

The changing private markets landscape: https://www.newnex.io/discussions/335

Digital Markets Act is alive and kicking. Apple is forced to open-up. Read the impact.

https://www.newnex.io/discussions/334

Newnex tracked $1.3+ billion in funding rounds over the past two weeks in European Venture Capital.

Catalog, a French startup, aims to develop a software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution designed to efficiently oversee B2B sales operations across multiple sales channels. The company has recently secured a €3 million funding round, with LocalGlobe taking the lead. Other notable investors in this round include HelloWorld, Kima Ventures, Motier Ventures, and ATI.

eComID, a Swedish startup focused on empowering global online retailers to reduce online returns, has successfully closed an oversubscribed pre-seed round, securing €2.75 million. CapitalT led the funding round, with a follow-on investment from H&M Group Ventures and strategic angel investors. The capital injection will enable eComID to enhance its platform capabilities and extend its previously invitation-only solution to a broader range of brands.

Phagenesis, a UK-based medical technology startup, has secured a $42 million Series D funding round aimed at launching its swallowing disorder medical device in the US market and extending its presence across Europe. This financing round saw co-leadership from EQT Life Sciences in the Netherlands and Sectoral Asset Management in Canada. Notable participation came from British Patient Capital, Northern Gritstone, and Aphelion as well.

Gridcog, a cleantech software startup, has confirmed the acquisition of £3.3 million in funding. The company has engineered a clean energy simulation and tracking platform, empowering businesses venturing into clean energy projects, ranging from large-scale solar to EV charging, to identify the most suitable solutions for their commercial and market needs. Led by AlbionVC, the funding will fuel Gridcog's intensified expansion efforts across the UK and Europe, following a remarkable year marked by a five-fold revenue surge in these regions.

Haiper, headquartered in London, has emerged from stealth mode, unveiling its video-generative AI platform. The company revealed that it has successfully raised $13.8 million in a seed funding round, with Octopus Ventures taking the lead.

Monzo, the UK's foremost digital bank, has disclosed securing £340 million in a funding round aimed at accelerating its expansion initiatives. Spearheaded by CapitalG, the round also welcomes prominent global tech investors such as GV (Google Ventures) and HSG (HongShan Capital), alongside existing supporters like Passion Capital and Tencent.

Sunfire, a German manufacturer of electrolyzers, has unveiled its successful €215 million Series E equity financing round. This significant milestone is bolstered by an additional term loan of up to €100 million extended by the European Investment Bank (EIB).

Formalize, previously known as Whistleblower Software and headquartered in Denmark, has successfully secured €15 million in a Series A funding round. The investment, spearheaded by BlackFin Tech, the venture arm of BlackFin Capital Partners, will be instrumental in furthering Formalize's mission to become Europe's leading compliance software provider.

Multiverse Computing, a Spanish company specializing in value-based quantum and quantum-inspired computing solutions, has secured €25 million in an oversubscribed investment round. The round was led by Spanish VC Columbus Venture Partners through their SCR, with significant contributions from Quantonation Ventures based in Paris and new investors, such as the European Innovation Council Fund, Redstone Quantum Fund, and Indi Partners, among others.

Limbic, headquartered in London, has successfully raised a $14 million Series A round with backing from Khosla Ventures, aimed at expanding its product offerings to healthcare providers in the United States. The startup specializes in AI-driven mental health solutions, including a chatbot and clinical referral software. Notably, Limbic's chatbot is already utilized by 33% of the UK's NHS Talking Therapies services, benefiting approximately 260,000 patients. Additional investors in this round include LGBTQIA+ investment syndicate Gaingels and Illusian, the family office of Ilkka Paananen, co-founder of Supercell, a game development company.

Cellcolabs, headquartered in Sweden, has secured $8.7 million from angel investors. The company focuses on producing specialized stem cells crucial for the development of cell therapy treatments targeting diseases linked to inflammation. Among the investors are Fredrik Österberg and Jens von Bahr, both cofounders of the publicly-listed casino technology company Evolution AB.

Zama, a company specializing in open-source cryptography and developing cutting-edge Fully Homomorphic Encryption (FHE) solutions to safeguard privacy in blockchain and AI, has revealed a €67 million Series A funding round. Multicoin Capital and Protocol Labs lead the investment, with contributions from Metaplanet, Blockchange Ventures, VSquared, and Stake Capital. Notably, the funding round also boasts participation from blockchain luminaries such as Juan Benet, founder of Filecoin, Anatoly Yakovenko, co-founder of Solana, and Gavin Wood, co-founder of Ethereum and co-creator of Polkadot.

Greenlyte Carbon Technologies (GCT), a Direct Air Capture startup, has revealed the completion of a €10.5 million Pre-Series A funding round. GCT has also secured two grants from the European Fund for Regional Development. Notably, alongside substantial contributions from existing investors such as Earlybird Venture Capital, Green Generation Fund, Carbon Removal Partners, and Board member Dr. Udo Jung, Partech has joined the investor consortium.

Mews, headquartered in Amsterdam and renowned for its cloud-based property management system (PMS), has unveiled a significant milestone with the announcement of securing $110 million in funding. Kinnevik spearheaded this round, with notable participation from Revaia, Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Notion Capital, and LGVP. This investment has propelled Mews to unicorn status, valuing the company at $1.2 billion.

Theia Insights, headquartered in Cambridge and specializing in deep tech, has revealed the successful closure of a fresh funding round, amassing $6.5 million. Leading this round is Silicon Valley's Unusual Ventures, with notable participation from Fidelity International Strategic Ventures and LA-based Clocktower Ventures, alongside several strategic angels. The influx of capital will be allocated towards further technology development and the expansion of services across both the US and Europe.

Kurs Orbital, an Italian spacetech startup, has successfully secured €3.7 million in Seed funding to propel its innovative solutions into the in-orbit services and logistics market. OTB Ventures spearheaded this funding round, with participation from Credo Ventures, Galaxia (the Italian National Technology Transfer Hub for Aerospace of CDP Venture Capital), alongside Obloo Ventures and the regional co-investment fund Piemonte Next, created and managed by CDP Venture Capital and supported by the Financial Institute of the Piedmont Region, Finpiemonte. Additionally, In-Q-Tel (IQT) and Inovo also contributed to the round.

Wobble Genomics, a spin-out from the University of Edinburgh, disclosed securing £8.5 million to advance the commercialization of its technology. Mercia Ventures and BGF co-led the funding round, with support from IQ Capital, EOS Advisors, and Old College Capital, the university's venture fund.

UK fintech Nuke From Orbit has successfully raised £500,000 in a Pre-Seed funding round aimed at launching its innovative product to market. The startup has devised a unique approach to enhancing mobile phone security, specifically focusing on safeguarding financial accounts and personal identifiable information (PII). The funding originates from various UK-based companies and investors, including Oliver Bridgen, Co-Founder & COO of specialist FX broker Ballinger Group, and Jordan Hallows, founder of Wey Bridging Finance.

Berlin-headquartered insurtech startup INSRD has revealed its successful raise of a €500K Pre-Seed round. Participating in Cohort 5 of Earlybird Venture Capital's Vision Lab Program, INSRD benefits from funding, mentorship, and networking opportunities. The startup is focused on revolutionizing commercial insurance to cater to rapidly

Cogna, a provider of hyper-customized software driven by individual preferences and delivered through artificial intelligence, has secured £3.76 million in funding to transform the approach to solving unique and complex challenges within traditional industries. Leading the funding round is Hoxton Ventures, with additional investment from Notion Capital and Octopus First Cheque Fund. Notable angel investors, including Stan Boland (Founder of Icera), Hermann Hauser (of Amadeus Capital Partners), Professor Neil Lawrence (DeepMind Professor of Machine Learning at Cambridge), Zayd Enam and Tim Shi (Founders of Cresta), Ping Wu (CEO of Cresta), as well as Aviv Nevo and Nick Elliot (Helsing), also participated in the round.

Paris-based Ask for the moon, previously known as Wingzy, a knowledge management software, has disclosed securing €2.5M in a new funding round. Matterwave Ventures and UI Investissement, recognized as prominent players in the industrial Deeptech sector, participated in the round.

Legitify, an online notarization solution, has confirmed the completion of a successful €1.5 million Seed funding round. The round was spearheaded by Verb Ventures, with additional investments from Enterprise Ireland, Actium Partners, Redbay Ventures, and other notable investors.

Phelas, a Munich-based leader in the energy storage sector, has disclosed securing €4.1 million in a seed round of funding. E44 Ventures, an Israeli climate tech fund, leads the funding round, with involvement from Axon Partners Group, Deutsche Telekom hub:raum Fund, BNV Partners, along with other investors and existing angel investors.

Suiso, a UK-based company dedicated to generating affordable, low-carbon, or zero-carbon energy, has secured £3 million in funding. The investment originates from NPIF – Mercia Equity Finance, managed by Mercia Ventures. This funding source is associated with the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund and Mercia’s EIS funds.

SUBLIME Energie, a deeptech startup, has revealed securing €11.5 million in funding. This recent round of financing, led by the Environment and Solidarity Revolution Fund managed by Credit Mutuel Impact and PSL, will bolster the development, production, and deployment of a demonstration plant.

Eye Security, headquartered in The Hague, specializes in safeguarding small and medium-sized European enterprises from cyber threats. The startup has disclosed securing €36 million in a Series B funding round, with J.P. Morgan Growth Equity Partners leading the investment. Additionally, existing investors such as Bessemer Venture Partners and TIN Capital participated in the round.

Steadybit, a prominent player in chaos engineering, has confirmed raising $6 million in Series A funding. Paladin Capital Group led the investment round. Steadybit is dedicated to enhancing software reliability through chaos engineering, a practice aimed at ensuring systems remain robust and resilient in unpredictable online environments.

Stockholm-based micro-mobility startup Voi, known for offering electric scooters for last-mile transportation, has announced the successful raise of $25 million in an oversubscribed funding round. Existing investors, including VNV Global, Raine Group, Nineyards Equity, Balderton, Creandum, Project A, Stena, Black Ice Capital, as well as founders and employees, participated in the latest funding round.

London-based logistics startup Packfleet has disclosed securing $10 million in a Series A round of funding. The round was co-led by General Catalyst and Voyager. Additionally, existing investors such as Creandum, Entree Capital, and Founder Collective participated in the round.

Belgium-based Simera Sense, a provider of end-to-end optical solutions for the small satellite Earth observation industry, has secured €13.5 million in its first significant growth investment round. The funding spearheaded by NewSpace Capital and Knife Capital. With this investment, the company intends to enhance its product range, expand production capacity, and accelerate on-board processing capabilities, thereby bringing transformative changes to the market.

Helsinki-based medical device company Sooma Medical has announced securing €5 million in growth funding led by Voima Ventures, a Nordic early-stage investor. Other participants in the round include Verge HealthTech Fund and existing investor Stephen Industries. Sooma specializes in offering Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) through its portable neuromodulation device. tDCS utilizes a gentle electrical current to stimulate the brain and alleviate symptoms of depression without the necessity of pharmaceuticals. By targeting the brain, Sooma's technology provides symptom relief without the typical side effects associated with antidepressant medications.

Lyon-based healthtech startup HawkCell has revealed securing €5 million in a Series A round of funding led by German venture capital firm MIG Capital. Additionally, French investment bank Bpifrance participated in the funding round. HawkCell specializes in transforming human MRI into the first animal-dedicated imaging using AI algorithms. Their plug-and-play technology is tailored for veterinary applications, contributing to the advancement of animal healthcare and preclinical research.

Amsterdam-based Ellogon, a company focused on personalizing immunotherapy through data and algorithms, has announced securing €1 million in fresh funding. The funding comes from ROM InWest and UvA Ventures Holding.

Berlin-based Quantistry, a provider of cloud-native chemical simulation platforms, has disclosed securing €3 million in a fresh funding round. The round was led by Ananda Impact Ventures. Other investors participating in the round include Chemovator, the business incubator of BASF, IBB Ventures, and a Family Office.

Tomorrow Things, an AI startup, has successfully secured €1.5 million in funding to advance the development of its AI-powered Operating System for machines on the internet. Tomorrow Things operates as an intelligent automation platform, generating digital twins of technical assets. High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF) and neoteq ventures spearheaded the funding round, with additional support from Notion Capital, solo GP Robin Capital, and a group of specialized business angels including Christian Noske, Maximilian Eichler, Thomas Lang, Thomas Hollwedel, and Markus Doetsch, focusing on fundraising, marketing, and B2B SaaS.

Bristol-based battery technology company Anaphite has successfully raised £1.6 million in funding. This funding comprises £685,000 in grant funding from the Investor Partnerships Future Economy programme, along with over £880,000 committed by private investors. The investors include Elbow Beach Capital, Wealth Club, Bristol Private Equity Club, and several angel investors. Anaphite's approach to battery manufacturing involves unique chemistry, aiming to produce more sustainable, faster-charging, and lower-cost batteries to drive the transition towards electric vehicles (EVs).

Smartschool, an edtech company originally founded in Poland and now headquartered in San Francisco, has revealed raising $1.5 million in a Pre-Seed funding round. The funding was provided by Inovo VC, The Explorer Fund, and angel investors such as Andreas Michaelides, Chief of Psychology at Noom, and Konrad Howard, co-founder of Booksy.

BotGuard OÜ, a cybersecurity software company founded in Estonia, has successfully raised a €12 million Series A funding round. The company specializes in assisting web hosting providers in managing traffic and safeguarding their infrastructure from malicious threats. The funding round is led by MMC Ventures, with participation from existing investors Tera Ventures and Expeditions Fund. Additionally, prominent angel investors such as Stefan Lindeberg have also contributed to the round.

Berlin-based Polar Signals, a provider of continuous profiling products, has announced securing an additional $6.8 million in funding. This funding round was led by Spark Capital. Additional investors include GV, Lightspeed, Haystack, Lorimer, and a group of esteemed angel investors, including Guillermo Rauch, Julius Volz, Monica Sarbu, Jimmy Zelinskie, Nikhil Benesch, and Erik Bernhardsson.

Stockholm-based Younium, a provider of B2B subscription management and billing software, has announced securing an additional SEK 31 million in funding. The funding round was led by existing investors and joined by Partinc Capital, which currently holds the largest ownership stake in Younium alongside the founders.

Autonomo, a checkout-free software company, has announced the successful closure of a £2 million Seed funding round. The startup specializes in building checkout-free software, allowing retailers to transform their existing stores into cashierless shopping experiences. The funding round is led by Potter Ventures, with participation from Liverpool-based UK investors River Capital through their award-winning EIS growth fund 'fund:AI'.

Vienna-based climate tech startup Necture, known for its platform for managing car fleets and charging infrastructure to accelerate the adoption of electric fleets, has announced securing additional funding. This brings its Series A round to €7 million. The latest round was led by Switzerland’s Smart Energy Innovationsfonds and Austrian VC Verbund X Ventures, with participation from existing investors Speedinvest and smartworks innovation GmbH.

Munich-based data product management pioneer, Mindfuel, has announced the closure of a €3.75 million seed investment round. The investment was led by Project A Ventures, with participation from several angels. With successful ventures in their home markets, Mindfuel plans to utilize the funding to expand its platform into new markets across Europe.

German fintech Naro has recently concluded a $3 million pre-seed funding round. The round was led by European investors La Famiglia, in partnership with General Catalyst and Discovery Ventures. Additionally, founders of European unicorns Flix and Forto, as well as other VCs such as Angel Invest and Robin Capital, participated in the round. Operators with leadership experience at fintech companies like Liqid, N26, Plaid, and Trade Republic also contributed. This funding marks Naro's emergence from stealth mode.

Amsterdam-based journey management platform TheyDo has announced the completion of an additional $34 million in a fresh funding round, led by Blossom Capital. Other existing investors, including Arches Capital, Innovation Quarter, global customer experience evangelist Steven van Belleghem, Highsage Ventures, and 20Sales, also participated in the round.

Dubendorf, Switzerland-based dental startup Odne announced on Wednesday that it has secured $5 million in a Series A1 round of funding led by Revere Partners and NV Capital. Additionally, several other renowned funds, such as Dental Innovation Alliance (DIA), Plug&Play, Hatcher, Zürcher Kantonalbank, as well as various family offices and angel investors, participated in the round.

London-based medtech company ThinkSono, specializing in ultrasound AI guidance solutions, has successfully concluded its latest funding round, surpassing its target to secure £2.1 million (approximately €2.45 million). The latest investment was led by id4 ventures and saw contributions from Brandenburg Kapital, Calm Storm Ventures, Dubai Angel Investors, CrowdCube, Cur8 Capital, alongside several angel investors and vascular surgery clinicians.

SURI, a prominent UK personal care brand specializing in sustainable oral care products, has announced the successful completion of its Series A funding round, securing £6 million in investment. The funding round was co-led by prominent investors JamJar investments, V3 Ventures, dmg ventures, and Hambro Perks.

French white-label cloud gaming company Gamestream has announced today that it has raised €4.5 million in funding. Audacia and Bpifrance, through its Tech and Touch fund, have joined the company's previous investors in this round of funding.

Germany-based acto, a provider of active decision intelligence for B2B sales teams, has successfully raised €3.7 million in a seed round of funding. The investment was led by 468 Capital and Cusp Capital, with continued support from adesso ventures. Additionally, another.vc and business angels such as Benedikt Franke (Planetly) and Niklas Hellemann (SoSafe) participated in the round.

GScan, a deep tech firm, has secured a €3 million seed round from investors including Markus Villig, the founder of Bolt, as well as Japanese corporate venture funds and existing angel investors.

Paris-based Kolet, a sustainable eSIM provider, has announced the closure of a €5 million seed funding round with European investment funds daphni and 9900 Capital.

Paris-based Lago, an open-source metering and usage-based billing platform, has successfully raised $22 million in a fresh round of funding led by FirstMark. Other notable participants in this funding round include Y Combinator, Lee Fixel’s Addition, New Wave, and Script, along with industry veterans Meghan Gill, Romain Huet, and Clément Delangue.

Vawlt, a startup specializing in long-term data storage, has recently concluded a funding round, raising €2.15 million. The round was led by Lince Capital and included participation from Basinghall and Beta Capital, along with existing investors Armilar Venture Partners and Shilling VC. Additionally, two former executives from Cisco and OVHcloud also contributed to the funding round.

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