You might’ve grown weary to the restatements of our excitement over the growth and maturation of the Central & Eastern European startup scene and nevertheless, we can’t emphasize enough that the region has become one of the most vibrant startup powerhouses in Europe. As a result, more and more venture capital is flowing in the form of new accelerators, VC firms as well as other forms of support for the increasing amount of quickly growing startups.
Similarly, with other countries reviewed in our series listing active VC funds in the region (such as Czech Republic, Romania, or Estonia) Lithuania had made a big leap towards wider prominence as well as the attractiveness of its reaches. Consider the fact that it has the 3rd lowest profit tax in the EU, is one of the easiest places on the globe to start a business, and when combined with a dynamic ecosystem - it comes as no surprise that entrepreneurs end with lots and lots of venture capital luring in. For example, you can read about female entrepreneurs contributing to the Lithuanian startup ecosystem.
Therefore, let’s find out about Top VC funds from Lithuania investing in early-stage startups!
Iron Wolf Capital
Geography: Baltics
Preferred industries: AI, IoT, SaaS, Deeptech, Fintech, Marketplaces
Investment ticket: €0.25 -2.0M
Company stage: Seed to Early Growth
Iron Wolf Capital, an early-stage VC fund based in both London and Vilnius is a firm maintaining a very close watch over the region’s booming tech scene while enjoying presence in the old capital of European tech. Expectedly, their portfolio can look forward to a quite smooth landing into deep Western pockets throughout its maturation as well as receiving the support from an experienced, multi-faceted team of entrepreneurs and investment professionals to back them during stormy times of uncertainty. The fund has already built a portfolio of many interesting startups where, among others, are: Pixevia, Turing College, and Litilit.
Practica Capital
Geography: Baltic teams across Europe
Preferred industries: Industry-agnostic
Investment ticket: €200k to €2m+
Company stage: from seed to growth
Practica Capital is one of the oldest and most active VC funds in the region. Having well over 10 years of experience helping local founders get their heads up, Practica Capital is more than capable of supplying whatever a startup needs for successful development - be it advice, an introduction to a potential partner or client and obviously, the capital. Fund’s portfolio consists of over 55 startups among which you can find globally recognized names like CGTrader, Trafi, and Interactio.
Open Circle Capital
Geography: Baltics
Preferred industries: ICT, robotics and high-tech
Investment ticket: €100-500k
Company stage: Early stage
Open Circle Capital with its headquarters located in the capital of Lithuania, is a deeptech fund searching for strong experienced teams that have just gotten their first revenues flowing in. In exchange for a minority stake in the company, the firm would provide capital needed for further growth, as well as the ability to follow on the eventual rounds pumping the initial investment to a total amount of up to €3M. As of now, the VC fund focuses on investing in early-stage and some of their most promising companies are: Billo, Whatagraph and Solarbank.
Contrarian Ventures
Geography: Europe and Israel
Preferred industries: Energy Transition, Smart Mobility
Investment ticket: €500k
Company stage: Early Stage
The Vilnius-based Contrarian Ventures is a VC fund, solely and exclusively dedicated to mitigating the effects of climate change on our planet. At times when the firm is not busy supporting its portfolio companies in developing and scaling or reviewing the flow of the prospective investments, it gives back to the community in a wide array of forms. Climate-focused events, buildup of experts’ networks and a great deal of content are all available for climate-interested entrepreneurs and individuals to explore. Among a select group of their portfolio startups, you can find Hepta, CHOOOSE and Sterblue.
Coinvest Capital
Geography: Lithuania
Preferred industries: Industry-agnostic
Investment ticket: €450k-1.6M
Company stage: Early stage
Coinvest Capital is a fund aiming to combine the benefits of venture capital and angel investors by always syndicating the deals they conclude. As a result, the firm aims to provide both the funding and continuous hands-on support to its portfolio companies which would ensure each of them has all it takes to expand on the market quickly and assertively. The fund has already built a portfolio of many interesting startups where, among others, are Interactio, Oxipit as well as Foros.
70V
Geography: Baltics
Preferred industries: Sector-agnostic but with a B2B focus
Investment ticket: €20k-400k
Company stage: pre-seed to series A
70V is a Vilnius-based VC and sales accelerator looking for startups targeting B2B customers and those humble to advance its knowledge and understanding of their first and foremost source of funding - revenues. To do so, the firm would provide an intense training pertaining to all matters-sales while also giving startups a bit of fuel to keep the business going forward. Some, though not all of their portfolio companies include: Whatagraph, Oxus AI and Billo.
Apart from VC funds in Lithuania, early stage founders might also consider applying for local accelerator startup programs, all of which would be a great choice for elevating one’s startup idea onto a new level and/or preparation for an initial investment round.
Take for example the regions’ most active one - Startup Wise Guys which offers a suite of tailor-made programs for a wide range of industries targeting B2B segments that would provide guidance and mentorship along with first funding that would help reach the first, and oftentimes most important, milestones of your venture.
Then last but not least, one may also consider obtaining support from a local business angel network - LitBAN members of which quite often decide faster than the traditional VC firms and who could very well be a good partner of choice for your startup journey.
*If you have any insights about the article or know a VC fund that should’ve been included, drop me a line!
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