Startup investment rounds in CEE in 4Q 2022
> Number of funding rounds: 279 (189 fully disclosed in terms of amount, month, investors, and company details)
> The biggest disclosed investment round: Sunly - venture round - €200M, Mews - Series C - €185M, ZoidPay - venture round - €70M, RAMP - Series B - €70M, Tatum - Series A - €39.5M.
>Total value of funding closed in CEE: over €1.1B*
> Countries with the highest number of funding rounds: Poland - 139 rounds, Estonia - 35, Czechia - 19 rounds,
> The most active VC funds: EBRD, InnovX, Depo Ventures, New Vision 3, Change Ventures, Eleven Ventures, Impetus Capital, Kaya, Nation 1, Presto Ventures, SFG Holding, Startup Wise Guys, Superhero Capital.
> The most popular industries: Ecommerce, Energy, Finance, AI, and Analytics.
*90 rounds undisclosed in terms of transaction value
In Q4 2022 VC investments in CEE reached €1.1B, that was a noteworthy reduction in secured deal values compared to the preceding quarter, which was €1.3B. It is worth noting that the decrease in deal values, which stood at a level slightly over €1B in Q4, could be attributed to a prudent approach adopted by investors in response to the ongoing macroeconomic conditions.
Despite the reduction in secured deals, the number of funding rounds has actually increased, indicating a potential shift in the Central and Eastern European venture capital landscape. This is a clear indication of investors diversifying their portfolios by spreading their investments across several funding rounds, albeit at a smaller scale.
Those mentioned macroeconomic conditions include but are not limited to escalating inflation rates, limited access to capital, and increasing market volatility. As a result, the VC market is experiencing a palpable impact of these macroeconomic factors, and it is likely that these trends will continue to influence the investment decisions of VC firms in the CEE region in the coming months.
Let’s have a closer look at what shaped the CEE ecosystem in Q4 2022.
In Q4 2022, 279 VC transactions were recorded. While the distribution of deals was rather stable throughout the quarter (64 in October, 67 in November, and 58 in December), the value has steadily been falling (over €450M in October, and over €350M in December), according to the fully disclosed data. Another noticeable thing is that during Q4 we recorded only 2 mega-rounds (rounds over €100M), i.e. Estonian Sunly - €200M, and Czech Mews - €185M.
Other biggest rounds disclosed in Q4 were secured by Romanian ZoidPay (Venture Round - €70M), Polish RAMP (Series B - €70M), and Czech Tatum (Series A - €39.5M).
In the fourth quarter, Poland, Estonia, and Czechia accounted for 139, 35, and 19 funding rounds, respectively. These countries have also led in terms of investment volume - Estonia (over €300M), followed closely by Czechia (over €250M) and Poland (over €220M).
Among the most popular sectors were: Ecommerce, Energy, Finance, AI, and Analytics, while among the most active investors were EBRD, InnovX, Depo Ventures, New Vision 3, Change Ventures, Eleven Ventures, Impetus Capital, Kaya, Nation 1, Presto Ventures, SFG Holding, Startup Wise Guys, Superhero Capital.
Now let's review the Q4 results on a month-by-month basis. The review was based on publicly declared venture investments (name of startup, closing date, round’s size, participating investors).
Investment rounds in December
> Number of funding rounds: 58
> The biggest investment rounds: Mews - Series C - €185M, Aerones - Series A - €36.5M, Pactum - Series A - €19M.
> Total value of funding secured in CEE: over €350M
> Countries with most funding rounds: Poland - 12, Estonia - 11 rounds.
> The most active VC funds:
Revaia, Derive Ventures, Orbit Capital, Thayer Ventures, Salesforce Ventures, Notion Capital, henQ, Battery Ventures, Kinnevik, Goldman Sachs thanks to participating in the biggest investment round this month (Mews).
> The most appreciated industries: Real Estate, Energy, AI, E-commerce.
In December, the amount of funding obtained by CEE startups exceeded €350M and was raised during 58 funding rounds. Poland led with its 12 investment rounds, followed closely by Estonia, where 11 startups secured funding.
But it was Czechia that stood out in terms of funds raised - startups from this country secured over €190M (which was 50% of all VC money raised in the region that month).
Among the most active investors were: Revaia, Derive Ventures, Orbit Capital, Thayer Ventures, Salesforce Ventures, Notion Capital, henQ, Battery Ventures, Kinnevik, Goldman Sachs thanks to participating in the biggest investment round this month (Mews).
Find out more: TOP CEE funding rounds closed in December.
Investment rounds in November
> Number of funding rounds: 67
> The biggest investment round: ZoidPay - Venture Round - €73.5M, RAMP - Series B - €70M, Turbine - Series B - €20M.
> Total value of funding secured this in CEE: over €260M
> Countries with most funding rounds: Poland - 20, Estonia - 9 rounds
> The most active VC funds: Accel, Day One Capital, EBRD, InnoEnergy, Kaya, Nation1, New Vision 3, Presto Ventures, Vitosha Venture Partners, Startup Wise Guys thanks to the number of rounds.
GEM Digital thanks to participating in the biggest investment round this month.
> The most appreciated industries: Fintech, Blockchain and AI.
In November, the value of secured funding reached over €260M raised in 67 rounds. The biggest investments were secured by Romanian ZoidPay (Venture Round - €73.5M), Polish RAMP (Series B - €70), and Hungarian Turbine (Series B - €20M). Most rounds took place in Poland, Estonia and Czechia (20, 9 and 8 rounds, respectively). However, it was Poland and Romania who led in terms of size of secured funding - both over €85M. Among most active investors were Accel, Day One Capital, EBRD, InnoEnergy, Kaya, Nation1, New Vision 3, Presto Ventures, Vitosha Venture Partners, Startup Wise Guys thanks to the number of rounds secured, and GEM Digital thanks to participating in the biggest investment round this month (ZoidPay).
Investors showed the most interest in: Fintech, Blockchain and AI.
Find out more: TOP CEE funding rounds closed in November.
Investment rounds in October
> Number of funding rounds: 64
> The biggest investment round: Sunly - venture round - €200M, Tatum - Series A - €39.5M, Katana - Series B - €36M.
> Total value of funding secured in CEE: over €450M
> Countries with the most funding rounds: Poland - 17, Estonia - 15 rounds.
> The most active VC fund: Superhero Capital, EBRD, btov Partners, 42CAP thanks to the number of rounds.
Mirova thanks for participating in the biggest investment round this month (Sunly).
> The most appreciated industries: Energy, Cybersecurity, IT.
In October, 64 startups secured over €450M of funding, which made October the most active month of Q4 2022. Ecosystems with the most funding rounds were: Poland, and Estonia, with 17, and 15 rounds respectively. When it comes to the total amount of funding secured Estonia was on the undoubted lead (over €250M) but it is worth noticing that this achievement was accomplished mostly by 2 big funding rounds of Estonian Sunly and Katana. The biggest rounds in October were raised by Estonian Sunly (venture round - €200M), Czech Tatum (Series A - €39.5M), and Estonian Katana (Series B - €36M). VC showed the most interest in: IT, Energy and Cybersecurity.
Among investors that are worth distinguishing were Superhero Capital, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, btov Partners, 42CAP thanks to the number of rounds and Mirova thanks to participating in the biggest investment round this month (Sunly).
Find out more: TOP CEE funding rounds closed in October.
Now, let's discover the note-worthy and recently raised VC funds from CEE.
Notable VC funds raised from CEE in 4Q 2022:
- Market One Capital - one of Poland’s most recognizable VC funds has announced its next €80M fund aimed at backing early stage marketplaces.
- Credo Ventures - Czech €75M fund with a goal to support a variety of early stage CEE companies.
- OTB - Polish deep tech VC closed a €150M fund to invest across B2B AI automation, space tech, fintech, cybersecurity, and climate tech throughout Europe.
- Practica Capital - Lithuanian VC firm closed a €70M fund dedicated to backing early stage founders developing marketplaces, SaaS, and deep tech solutions across Baltics.
- 0100 Ventures - Bratislava-based VC firm has raised a €60M vehicle to back CEE startups.
Interested in other new VC Funds investing in CEE and Europe? Check out our article - recently raised VC funds from CEE and Europe.
Now let’s have a closer look at the Top 50 funding rounds closed in CEE between October and December 2022!
Top 50 CEE startup funding rounds closed in 4Q 2022:
- Sunly - Estonian independent power producer that builds solar and wind farms, which helps the current energy crisis.
- Mews - Czech hospitality startup which provides a cloud-based hotel property management platform with tools covering reservations, payments and more.
- ZoidPay - Romanian crypto liquidity platform enabling instant card issuance for purchases at any merchant.
- Ramp Network - Polish cryptocurrency payment infrastructure startup building a crypto payments infrastructure that allows users to easily exchange fiat currency for cryptocurrencies.
- Tatum - Czech startup developing a platform that allows developers, entrepreneurs, and businesses to utilize blockchain technology regardless of the blockchain.
- Aerones - a Latvian company that develops robotic technology for wind turbine care services (maintenance and inspection).
- Katana MRP - Estonian manufacturing and inventory software that helps to manage logistics and automate workflows by integrating all operations in one platform. It enables prioritizing orders and checking inventory resources in real time.
- Turbine - Hungarian startup building a platform to understand the inner mechanisms of cancer, enabling the discovery of novel protein targets, precision biomarkers, and better translation to patients.
- Pactum - Estonia-based startup making use of AI technology to negotiate employee’s or vendor’s contracts and increase their value. It determines win-win agreements via an easy-to-use chat by implementing effective negotiation strategies.
- Giraffe360 - Latvian robotic technology company that offers 360° photography and virtual tour camera for real estate agents.
- Shapr3D - Hungarian 3D modeling app for the iPad Pro that brings a revolutionary 3D modeling experience. It provides a precise way to create 3D models.
- Lattice Flow - Bulgarian platform that can auto-diagnose data and models, empowering ML teams to deliver robust and performant AI models faster.
- Supernova - a Czech tool that helps users build, mature, and scale their design system with ease.
- Keboola - Czech cloud platform helping clients combine, enhance and publish crucial information for internal analytics & data products.
- Almacena - Bulgarian B2B Marketplace for agricultural products that create traceability and transparency, shortens the supply chain and brings more value and bargaining power to the origin exporters and end-market buyers.
- Prosoma - Polish medical company that provides digital therapeutics solutions for cancer treatment.
- Kalder - Polish unified web3 tooling platform for brands and creators to drive meaningful engagement, onboard new users, and reward communities of super fans.
- Miros AI - Estonian wordless tool for e-commerce that mirrors shoppers intent and surfaces the products they have in mind.
- Tapline - Bulgarian digital funding platform providing subscription-based companies access to frictionless capital.
- Volteum - Hungarian fleet optimization platform for electric cars and vans.
- Upheal - Czech smart platform for mental health clinicians with AI-powered progress notes, secure video calling, and analytics.
- walk15 - Lithuanian startup that encourages people to walk every day with its app. (Seed - €600K)
- Instreamly - Polish streamer management platform, allowing streamers to cooperate with the brands they like.
- Heroify - Polish skill-testing platform for marketing and sales jobs that offers customized tests, created based on job descriptions.
- AlohaCamp - Polish online marketplace for booking unique Nature spots - treehouses, glamping, cabins and more.
- Adscanner - Croatian marketing startup that provides big data solutions for a new generation of TV business models.
- EduCat - Polish online platform making the application process to foreign universities easier and more convenient.
- Superface - Czech software startup that uses super interface components that enable plug-and-play usage of data and services provided by companies using their API.
- Airly - Polish cleantech startup that specializes in providing hyper-local data about air pollution.
- Flinn Comply - Bulgarian platform that allows medical device manufacturers to automate quality and regulatory processes.
- Epinote - Polish workflow optimization platform that takes over mundane and repetitive tasks that cannot be automated, previously performed by in-house employees.
- Apeiron Synthesis - Polish catalytic olefin metathesis technology that helps agrichemicals, fine chemicals, fragrances, polymers, and pharma.
- Watalook - Lithuanian beauty booking tool where customers can discover and book beauty professionals.
- Fusebox - Estonian startup building virtual power plants globally and helps local companies to become demand response aggregators.
- Nestor - Romanian people intelligence platform bringing together engagement, performance and development planning with a skills based approach to build a winning people strategy.
- Demoboost - Polish tool to easily create, share and track product demos.
- Goodlegal - Romanian one-stop shop for all legal requirements.
- Re:benefit - Bulgarian benefits management platform.
- Pixyle - Macedonian AI-powered tool that turns product images into beautifully categorized data that will improve your catalog management efficiency, analytics and product discovery.
- Adam - Czech platform connecting homeowners and businesses with verified local professionals.
- Licenseware - Romanian startup providing an open app ecosystem where users can access a range of third party enterprise apps with competitive licensing fees, underpinned by a public development framework.
- AISPECO - Lithuanian infrastructure inspection platform.
- Factoree - Czech production as a service startup allowing customers to source mechanical engineering parts online.
- Wimba - Polish startup offering a range of orthopedic 4D printed products for animals, new measurement techniques, and a dedicated app.
- Deepfin - Lithuanian automated and engaging finance management platform for freelancers.
- Spike API- Lithuanian-USA provider of an API aggregation and an ETL solution for data from wearables and IoT devices.
- Stepapp - Polish startup offering professional apartment cleaning services.
- Smarter Diagnostics - Polish startup improving injury prevention and the recovery after sports traumas by providing state-of-the-art AI solutions for data analysis.
- HearMe - Polish startup offering anonymous psychological support for employees.
- Restimo - Polish startup offering a system that enables customers to pay for their own meals in restaurants.
If you have some insights about the report, feel free to drop me a line!
Want to get a more detailed view of the CEE Startup & VC Ecosystem in 4Q 2022?
Discover our monthly, quarterly and yearly reports:
- VC Transactions in CEE in 2022
- VC Transactions in CEE in 1Q 2022
- VC Transactions in CEE in 2Q 2022
- VC Transactions in CEE in 3Q 2022
- TOP CEE funding rounds closed in October
- TOP CEE funding rounds closed in November
- TOP CEE funding rounds closed in December
- New VC Funds Investing in Europe - 4Q 2022
Disclaimer: This report features VC rounds that have been publicly disclosed before the publication date, or were shared by our VC and startup community. Grants and transactions below €50k were not considered. Furthermore, while we value all startups operating in CEE, our focus is on companies that originate from the region, self-identify as CEE companies, or have a significant presence of CEE founders.
Sources: Vestbee VC & startup community, startup press releases, web & social media monitoring, Crunchbase, PFR (Polish Development Fund).
