New Funds, New Opportunities #2

New funds, which means new startup opportunities, appear almost every day. Below are some of the most notable VCs that were announced last week.

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💸 Pact VC backed by Anne Hathaway, raised $36M to support European early-stage startups

Three women partners with an impressive background in the venture — Tong Gu, Reem Mobassaleh Wyndham, and Monik Pham — launched the new seed fund. According to TechCrunch, Pact will aim at "mission-driven" startups in what it calls the "ABC" categories: Access (economic inclusion), Betterment (personal and professional well-being), and Climate.

The fund’s LPs are Hollywood actress Anne Hathaway, Jeff Dean, head of artificial intelligence at Google, and Keith Teare, co-founder (and former) shareholder of TechCrunch.

See article for details.

Pact VC team.  Source: TechCrunch

💸 SE Ventures announces €500 million Fund II to accelerate climate and industrial tech startups

Schneider Electric has supported the launch of a second SE Venture fund, bringing the firm's total assets closer to €1B and making SE Venture one of the world's most significant climate and industrial technology venture capital firms. The main directions are electrification, digitalization, and decarbonization.

The first fund was launched in 2018; since then, it has invested in 40+ startups and seven venture capital funds and is collaborating with 200+ projects.

Find details here. 

SE Ventures team. Source: Linkedin

💸 Despite delays due to the situation in Ukraine, GR Capital's second fund raises €30 million

GR Capital, a European venture capital firm with offices in Berlin and Kyiv, has announced the closing of its second fund. The firm writes checks ranging from €5 million to €10 million per startup, targeting the fintech, mobility, health tech, and future work sectors.

More details in tech.eu. 

GR Capital team. Source: tech.eu

💸 Swiss firm EquityPitcher closes out the second fund at €45 million

Founded in Zurich in 2016, EquityPitcher supports startups in the DACH region (Germany, Austria, and Switzerland). The fund is not limited to a specific sector and has already assembled a portfolio of two dozen startups from various hierarchies, including artificial intelligence, smart cities, cybersecurity, and others.

According to EquityPitcher co-founder Sascha Horrig, the firm brings added value to startups through a vast network of contacts with "various leaders in the DACH region."

More details in tech.eu. 

EquityPitcher team. Source: EquityPitcher

💸 All-women Swedish VC firm BackingMinds closes €50M to back overlooked tech founders in the Nordics

BackingMinds mainly invests in early-stage unlisted companies. The fund's geographic focus is Northern Europe, where the team plans to write checks ranging from €500k to €3M.

It is the first venture capital firm in Sweden founded entirely by women. BackingMinds is backed by 24 investors, including several founders of unicorn companies such as Spotify, King, and Supercell, and prominent financial and business families such as the H&M family.

Details.

BackingMinds team. Source: Tech Funding News

💸 Nesta has a fresh £50m to back UK impact startups with patient capital

Nesta, an innovation foundation based in the UK, has launched a new £50m fund to back early-stage impact startups with checks between £500k and £1m. It is now looking to invest in startups which tackle three specific goals:

• Helping give every child a fair start;
• Supporting people to lead healthier lives;
  
• Creating a sustainable future.
  

Nesta has been the most active impact investor in the UK, making over 30 deals since 2012.

Details. 

Lisa Barclay, executive director of Nesta’s investment arm. Source: Sifted

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