The fourth annual European deep tech report. In a pivotal year for deep tech, how is Europe faring, and how has the breakout of AI influenced deep tech priorities and European deep tech credentials. Created in partnership with Lakestar, Walden Catalyst and Hello Tomorrow. Table of contents 1. DEEP TECH DEFINED – COMMON (MIS)CONCEPTIONS page 9 2. THE EUROPEAN DEEP TECH OPPORTUNITY page 28 3. FUNDING LANDSCAPE page 40 4. SEGMENT DEEP DIVES – BIGGEST TRENDS page 51 NOVEL AI, FUTURE OF COMPUTE, NOVEL ENERGY, SPACE TECH, RESILIENCE, COMPBIO & CHEMISTRY, ROBOTICS 5. FOUNDER RESOURCES page 171 6. CHALLENGES & RECOMMENDATIONS page 180

The CVC paradox: High investment activity, low acquisition rates by corporate sponsors Corporate venture capital has been an undisputed force in the US venture ecosystem. Since 2014 it has accounted for more than 46% of total VC deal value and 21% of deal count. Yet despite having deployed massive capital, CVCs haven’t converted many of their portfolio companies into acquisitions. PitchBook’s latest analyst note examines 25 years of CVC activity, exploring the reasons why M&A may not be the end goal for many of these investors. Senior analyst Kaidi Gao lays out some of the strategic and financial considerations for these investors and how a changing M&A landscape may impact potential CVC-backed acquisitions in 2025 and beyond. Table of contents Key takeaways 1 Introduction and methodology 2 Why US CVC investments have not led to many M&As 4 Case studies 9 Outlook 12

Executive summary Every startup begins with an idea. And that idea begins with the founding team. In some cases, that founding team is one individual—a solo entrepreneur with an appetite to do it all. In other cases, the team includes multiple co-founders who hope to use their complementary skills to conquer a market. In the beginning, the founding team typically owns all of the startup’s equity. But this state of affairs rarely lasts for long. From the outset, deciding how to divide equity among co-founders, investors, employees, and other stakeholders is a strategic choice—and it remains critical as a company continues to grow. This report uses anonymized data from more than 45,000 startups incorporated from 2015 through 2024 to shed new light on how founder ownership works across the U.S. venture ecosystem, digging into first-of-its-kind data on the composition of founding teams, how founding teams divide their initial pool of equity, and how equity ownership evolves as startups move through their fundraising journeys. How should a company spend this precious equity resource? We hope this data can help founding teams and their investors as they consider this question at every stage of the venture-backed journey. Report highlights Solo founders are stepping up: The percentage of all startups incorporated on Carta that are led by a solo founder has more than doubled over the past decade, reaching 35% in 2024. Over this same span, startups with three, four, and five founders have become less prevalent. Solo founders are less likely to raise VC funding: Compared to larger founding teams, solo founders are less successful in raising venture capital. While solo founders comprised 35% of all companies incorporated in 2024, they accounted for just 17% of all companies launched in 2024 that also closed a VC round before the end of the year. Equal equity splits are becoming more common: While most founding teams choose to divide equity among themselves on an unequal basis, a growing number of co-founders are opting for an even split. In 2024, 45.9% of two-person founder teams divided up their equity equally, compared to 31.5% back in 2015. Founder ownership declines most at early stages: After raising a seed round, the median founding team collectively owns 56.2% of their startup’s equity. At Series A, that figure falls to 36.1%, and at Series B, it’s 23%.

The following 3 pdfs offer in depth guides and recommendations for cross border investing in early stage startups. Each country offers unique opportunities and faces unique challenges, making the differentiating guides an excellent resource for tailored and structured recommendations for helping you become a successful cross border investor Slovenia’s startup ecosystem, while compact, boasts global success stories like BitStamp and Outfit7. With a strategic location in Europe, the country bridges Eastern and Western markets. Its tight-knit community, supported by accelerators, incubators, and a growing network of investors, makes it a fertile ground for innovative startups aiming for international expansion​ Download the Guidebook Known for its world-class innovation and strong engineering heritage, Finland is a leader in sectors like gaming, health tech, and AI. Iconic names such as Supercell and Wolt emerged from its collaborative ecosystem. With events like Slush and Arctic15, Finland offers a vibrant platform for startups and investors to connect​ Download the Guidebook Despite its small size, Estonia punches above its weight in the global startup scene, producing unicorns like Skype and Bolt. With a digital-first approach, including e-Residency, Estonia makes it easy for international founders and investors to thrive. Its supportive policies and efficient digital infrastructure foster rapid growth and innovation Download the Guidebook

The report provides an in-depth look at the Greek startup ecosystem for 2024-2025, highlighting key trends, investments, and emerging sectors like AI and green technologies. It explores funding challenges, gender disparities, and initiatives such as HDBI and Elevate Greece that are driving innovation and global competitiveness. An essential resource for understanding Greece’s entrepreneurial landscape. Download the Full Report Here

The Association for Financial Markets in Europe (AFME), in collaboration with eleven other European and international organisations, has published the seventh edition of the “Capital Markets Union – Key Performance Indicators” report, tracking the progress of Europe’s capital markets against nine key performance indicators and analysing the progress over the past seven years. Among the key findings of the 2024 report on European capital markets’ performance: EU Capital Markets Falling Behind: Despite some cyclical gains, the EU lags behind the US, UK, and China in most key indicators, such as access to capital, global interconnectedness, and market liquidity. The EU’s capital markets remain fragmented, undermining economic competitiveness on a global scale. ESG Leadership, but Growth Slowing: The EU continues to lead in sustainable finance, with ESG bonds accounting for 13% of total bond issuance in 2024, ahead of the US and UK. However, growth in EU ESG issuance has not kept pace with growth in non-ESG issuance, with the overall share of ESG issuance down from 15% in 2021, signalling a potential plateau. Deteriorating Intra-EU Integration: The report highlights a worrying decline in financial integration within the EU, a trend also noted by the European Central Bank. This fragmentation threatens the EU’s overall financial stability and its ability to compete globally.EU Securitisation Market Remains Underdeveloped: The EU securitisation market continues to trail behind those of the US, UK, and Australia. Currently, only 1.9% of outstanding EU loans are transformed into securitised vehicles or loan sales, compared to 7% in the US, 2.8% in Australia, and 2.2% in the UK. Issuers from only 9 of the 27 EU member states utilised securitisation as a source of funding in the first half of 2024. Widening Market Disparities: Northern European nations, such as Luxembourg and the Netherlands, boast deeper capital markets and greater access to finance, while countries in Eastern Europe lag behind. This disparity poses a significant challenge to the EU’s ambition for an integrated capital market. EU FinTech Ecosystem Stalling: Private investment in EU FinTech remains lower than in the US and UK, limiting the region’s progress in digital finance. However, the EU has taken a leadership position in the issuance of tokenised bonds, accounting for 20% of the global market in this emerging area. Download the Report

We happily share with you the 10th anniversary edition of the State of European Tech presented by atomico. This report outlines a data-driven analysis of the trends, challenges, and opportunities shaping European tech over the past decade. For more information on this report you can visit: https://www.stateofeuropeantech.com/ Download the report below: Download The Report

25 Years of EBAN Since its establishment in 1999, it has been our privilege and honour to drive the growth of the early-stage investment and entrepreneurial ecosystem across Europe and beyond. Over the past 25 years, through numerous programmes, initiatives, and events, EBAN has facilitated the creation of a more integrated innovation value chain, enabling smart capital, corporations, governments, and innovators to collaborate more effectively and synergistically. Through its Network, Events, Communities, EBAN Academy, Research and Advocacy work, the association has positioned itself as a leader in connecting angel ecosystems across borders, setting standards and best practices in the market, fostering knowledge-sharing among diverse stakeholders and representing the interests of the asset class. Now heading into its 26th year, We want to celebrate this important milestone and many of the achievements made to date through this publication. Download the EBAN 25 Years History Book here

Building a Vibrant Business Angel Ecosystem in Europe Recommendations for EU and National Policy Makers This Policy Recommendation Paper addresses key issues facing the EU’s startup ecosystem, particularly the lack of funding and regulatory barriers that push many startups to relocate during the scale-up phase. Despite Europe’s innovation potential, early-stage investments are limited. The paper calls for streamlined regulations, cross-border funding incentives, and stronger government support to boost business angel investments and improve liquidity for startups. Aligned with Mario Draghi’s competitiveness strategy, it offers actionable recommendations to ensure the EU remains a global leader in innovation and technology. We identify 7 key areas that need to be addressed by the EU: To see more and learn about the actions we recommend to fix these issues, download the full paper below! Fill the form below to subscribe and download the paper Email* When you submit the form, check your inbox to confirm your subscription Name* Surname* Organization* Privacy* I´m authorizing EBAN (The European Trade Association for Business Angels, Seed Funds and Early Stage Market Players, located in Brussels, 1040 BE) to save and use my personal data according to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This information is used by EBAN exclusively for sending newsletters and other email campaigns about the latest developments in the global entrepreneurial, innovation, and early-stage ecosystem. Subscribe and Download

EBAN presents the EBAN Annual Statistics Compendium for 2023, Europe’s most extensive annual research on the activity of business angels and business angel networks. The Compendium offers comprehensive insight into the overall early-stage market, shedding light on the operational dynamics of business angel networks and providing valuable insights into their investment attitudes. Drawing from a wealth of sources, including European business angel networks, Federations of BANs, and data from prominent platforms such as Dealroom.co, Crunchbase, PitchBook, and the European Commission, the report offers a nuanced perspective on the entrepreneurial landscape. This report covers 38 countries on the European continent, the figures presented in the report, while not representative of the entire European market, provide valuable insights into the trends and developments shaping the early-stage investment landscape. Fill the form below to subscribe and download the report Email* When you submit the form, check your inbox to confirm your subscription Name* Surname* Organization* Privacy* I´m authorizing EBAN (The European Trade Association for Business Angels, Seed Funds and Early Stage Market Players, located in Brussels, 1040 BE) to save and use my personal data according to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This information is used by EBAN exclusively for sending newsletters and other email campaigns about the latest developments in the global entrepreneurial, innovation, and early-stage ecosystem. Subscribe and Download

This guidebook walks you through the whole Estonian startup-investment ecosystem. This is good use for investors outside of Estonia or local investors who are interested in becoming an angel investor. The guidebook is put toghether in 2024 so all the information presented was valid around this time. 4NGELS is an international angel-investor education project with an aim to encourage cross-border investing into Estonia, Finland, Poland and Slovenia. In the guidebook you’ll get information about Estonia – the land of unicorns, gain insight about local startup ecosystem, useful information about how to find deal flrow, what to take into account culturally, what are local strenghts and challenges, legal information, success stories and emerging trends. The guidebook is free and you are welcome to download it.) Download the guidebook here

Get the latest on the Future of European Competitiveness presented by the European Commission. In Part A 2 this programme goes over how to tackle the innovation deficit that is taking place throughout the continent. You can read an excerpt of the detailed report below Read the Full Report Excerpt from Part A.2 of the report: A better financing environment for disruptive innovation, start-ups and scale-ups is needed as barriers to growth within the European markets are removed. While high-growth companies can typically obtain finance from international investors, there are good reasons to further develop the financing ecosystem within Europe. Very early-stage innovation would benefit from a deeper pool of angel investors. Ensuring sufficient local capital to fund scale-ups would concentrate the spillovers of innovation within Europe. Increasing the appeal of European stock markets for IPOs would improve funding options for founders, encouraging more start-up activity in the EU. To generate a significant increase in equity and debt funding available to start-ups and scale-up, the report proposes the following measures. First, expanding incentives for business “angels” and seed capital investors. Second, assessing whether further changes to capital requirements under Solvency II are warranted, which establishes capital adequacy rules for insurance companies, and issuing guidelines for EU Pension Plans, with the aim of stimulating institutional investment in innovative companies in selected sub-sectors. Third, increasing the budget of the European Investment Fund (EIF), which is part of the EIB Group and provides finance to SMEs, improving coordination between the EIF and the EIC, and eventually rationalising the VC funding environment in Europe. Finally, enlarging the mandate of the EIB Group to enable co-investment in ventures requiring larger volumes of capital, while also enabling it to take on more risk to help “crowd in” private investors.

Compared to the previous 6 months in 2023,  the first half of 2024 is seeing a resurgence of investments within the European tech ecosystem. Around €47.3bn, which includes €18.7bn debt funding has been injected into European startups in H1. This staggering amount is indicative of the demand for high quality talent and innovative products that are being pushed by VCs, public funds, and banks. Get the latest reporting of these from Sifted as they complied their H1 review on investments made throughout the continent.

The angel investor market in 2023 exhibited an increase in active investors, but a decline in the number of investments and the total dollars invested by angels, according to the Center for Venture Research at the University of New Hampshire.  

During each quarter Leapfunder prepares a State of the Startup Market Report and have just issued Q1 of 2024. In this report they go over developing startup hubs in Germany and the Netherlands while also mentioning new arrivals in their Startup Directory. You can also find valuable insights when reading through their interview with Sabine Schoorl, senior partner at LUMO Labs and startup coach since 2013.  Get the latest updates in this report rendition and stay up to date on the new up incoming startups.  

AEBAN presents its VIII Annual Report on the activity of Business Angels in Spain during the year 2023, prepared by the team of the Business Angels Network of the IESE Business School. This report will explain that the aggregate data of early-stage direct investment activity shows a clear decrease in investment in 2023. This decrease is more significant in mature stage projects, where the scarcity of foreign investment has been especially felt. Find the full report in Spanish and an excutive summary report in English.                

Once a year, the Estonian Business Angels Network conducts a survey among its members, asking investors to share their investments made during the year. Last year in 2023 they have found that the same level of investments have been made, which has proved favourable especially given the continuation of the war in Ukrain and the current economic environment. In this report you will find in which sectors the most common types of investments being made and the changes in where they have been made geographically. Find these insights from EstBAN network in the full report here: 

The Finnish Business Angels Network (FiBAN) reports a significant decline in angel investments in Finnish startups during 2023, with funding dropping from €37 million to €26 million compared to the previous year. This 30% decrease reflects the cautious stance adopted by investors amidst uncertain financial markets. In this report, FiBAN goes over how this decrease effected the various funding rounds of startups, as well as the distribution of invesments and exits by region. To learn more about the current state of the Finnish investment market you can find the full report below.  

Lisbon, February 5, 2024 – Eight out of ten (79%) Portuguese early stage investors are dissatisfied with public policies for the sector. According to the “Early Stage Investment Barometer 2023”, the first survey of the sentiment and perspectives of investors in the Portuguese ecosystem, carried out by the Portuguese Association of Early Stage Investors– Investors Portugal, 21% rate the evolution of these measures very negatively,  This analysis will go into further detail into Portuguese investor sentiment towards the recent policies and trends that are prevelant throughout Portugal. To get more access to these premier insights you can read the full report down below  

In the ongoing effort to support and develop the Czech startup ecosystem, EBAN member Depo Ventures are providing you with exclusive and extensive data from business angels, LPs, GPs, and potential newcomers who participated in their survey of startup investors in Czech Republic. Find a link below to the full report in English.  

Our partner Carta is a proud sponsor of the freshly-released European Data Insights. Read full report here.

Our partner Carta is a proud sponsor of the freshly-released State of Gender Diversity in European Venture report – the most comprehensive analysis of the funnel of female innovation in Europe. Read the full report to discover unprecedented levels of data on the investment opportunities to back female entrepreneurs and emerging fund managers in Europe.

The European space sector benefits from being diverse, robust, and enjoying rapid growth in recent years. European nations have a long history of cooperation in space research, technology development, and satellite deployment and the European space sector encompasses a wide range of activities, including satellite manufacturing, launch services, Earth Observation (EO) applications, broadcasting satellite services, global navigation solutions, and space exploration ventures. In this handbook, we will explore the key players, trends, risks, and opportunities to provide Business Angels, who are not yet operating in the sector, with the basic information to assess and explore investment opportunities in the space sector.

The State of the European Tech executive summary encapsulates the most crucial data points of the year. Delving into key indicators of the ecosystem’s health, it meticulously spotlights both favorable aspects and challenges. The narrative articulates a central thesis for the year: the imperative for the entire ecosystem to commence embracing risk in order to shape the future. Key findings reveal that global investment levels have experienced a notable decline, reflecting a market reset that extends beyond European borders. Projections for the total investment volume in 2023 indicate a decrease to less than half of the peak seen in 2021 across all global regions. Contrary to a global slowdown, Europe emerges as a leader in producing new tech founders, surpassing the United States consistently over the past five years. Despite a heightened threshold for entering entrepreneurship, the annual volume of founders initiating new tech startups in Europe exceeds that of the US. Following a downturn that resulted in a $400 billion reduction in ecosystem value, there has been a significant rebound, bringing the total ecosystem value back to $3 trillion. This resurgence is attributed to a robust recovery in public markets, elevating Europe’s value to its historical peak. You can read or download the report here: 

EBAN presents the EBAN Annual Statistics Compendium for 2022, Europe’s most extensive annual research on the activity of business angels and business angel networks. The Compendium offers comprehensive insight into the overall early-stage market, shedding light on the operational dynamics of business angel networks and providing valuable insights into their investment attitudes. Drawing from a wealth of sources, including European business angel networks, Federations of BANs, and data from prominent platforms such as Dealroom.co, Crunchbase, PitchBook, and the European Commission, the report offers a nuanced perspective on the entrepreneurial landscape. This report covers 38 countries on the European continent, the figures presented in the report, while not representative of the entire European market, provide valuable insights into the trends and developments shaping the early-stage investment landscape. Fill the form below to subscribe and download the report Email* When you submit the form, check your inbox to confirm your subscription Name* Surname* Organization* Privacy* I´m authorizing EBAN (The European Trade Association for Business Angels, Seed Funds and Early Stage Market Players, located in Brussels, 1040 BE) to save and use my personal data according to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This information is used by EBAN exclusively for sending newsletters and other email campaigns about the latest developments in the global entrepreneurial, innovation, and early-stage ecosystem. Subscribe and Download {{ vc_btn:title=Download+Statistics+Infographic&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2023%252F12%252FInfographic-Updated-post-summit-27.11.23-1.png%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }} {{ vc_btn:title=Download+EBAN%27s+Statistics+Compendium+2022&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttps%253A%252F%252Fdrive.google.com%252Ffile%252Fd%252F1Ej66IXC5lUNjyaIqyKvfQaBRs_2ukWSv%252Fview%253Fusp%253Dsharing%7Ctitle%3ADownload%2520EBAN%27s%2520Statistics%2520Compendium%25202022%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

This report by EBAN provides a list of all Business Angel Networks and Federations currently active in Europe. It has been compiled through a combination of online resources and data providers such as our partner Dealroom, as well as Pitchbook, Gust, National Business Angel Network listings, Social Media Platforms, reports by EBAN Members, and more. Currently, there are 358 organizations identified by EBAN as active Business Angel Networks or federations spread across 37 countries. A full breakdown of organizations per country can be found in the report. The purpose of this report is to provide a better overview of the Business Angel Networks and Federations ecosystem in Europe. Read or download the report here:  v

The EIF VC Survey and the EIF Private Equity Mid-Market Survey (the largest combined regular survey exercises among General Partners on a pan-European level) provide an opportunity to retrieve unique market insights. This publication is based on the results of the 2023 VC Survey, conducted by the EIF with the support of Invest Europe. The paper focuses on the market sentiment as well as on issues related to scale-up financing and EU strategic autonomy. The study looks at the current situation, developments in the recent past and expectations for the future. It highlights substantial challenges, but also opportunities as perceived by survey participants. The main results are summarised and compared over time. The publication provides a valuable picture of the developments in the VC market in 2023 as well as an outlook for the near future. The EIF Working Papers are designed to make available to a wider readership selected topics and studies in relation to EIF´s business. The Working Papers are edited by EIF’s Research & Market Analysis and are typically authored or co-authored by EIF staff or are written in cooperation with EIF. You can read the full study here. 

The Association for Financial Markets in Europe (AFME) and EBAN, in collaboration with ten other European and international organisations, has today published the sixth edition of the ‘Capital Markets Union – Key Performance Indicators’ report, tracking the progress of Europe’s capital markets against nine key performance indicators. This year’s report shows a mixed picture, revealing no discernible medium-term advancement on the CMU key performance indicators. This edition also coincides with the 30th anniversary of the Single Market. Here too, the data points show minimal change in the development of the EU’s capital markets on a global scale.

Patents, trade marks and startup finance This study examines the role of intellectual property (IP) rights – specifically patents and trade marks – in facilitating access to finance for European start-ups. To this end, it assesses the links between the filing of IPRs by start-up firms and their success in raising venture capital (VC), as well as the signalling power of patents and trade marks as predictors of successful exit strategies for investors. Main findings On average, 29% of European starts-ups have filed registered IP rights, with important differences between industry sectors. Biotechnology is by far the most IP-intensive sector, with nearly half of start-ups using patents or trade marks. Start-ups increasingly make use of IP rights as they grow, with a strong focus on European IP rights at all growth stages. The fiing of patents and trade marks at the seed or early growth stage is associated with a higher likelihood of subsequent VC funding. This effect is particularly important at the early stage, with a 4.3 times higher likelihood of funding for start-ups that filed trade marks, and a 6.4 times higher likelihood of funding for start-ups that filed patents. Start-ups that filed both trade marks and patents show the highest likelihood of funding at both the seed and early stages. The filing of European patents and trade marks is associated with an even higher likelihood of subsequent VC funding for start-ups. The filing of patents and/or trade marks is associated with a more than twice higher likelihood of successful exit for investors. The highest likelihood of Initial Public Offering (IPO) or acquisition is observed for start-ups that filed both patents and trade marks.

Best Practices of Angel Investing Exciting News from Dealum! Dealum has just released their latest project, a FREE online book titled “Best Practices of Angel Investing.” This comprehensive guidebook is a valuable resource for angel investors, startup enthusiasts, and anyone looking to navigate the world of early-stage investments. Key Highlights: ● Learn how to manage investor groups for optimal outcomes efficiently. ● Tips and tricks for due diligence and spotting the red and green flags in startup investments. ● Explore the power of community and networking in the startup ecosystem. ● Discover how to make impactful, ethical investments that drive both profit and positive change. The best part? It’s available for FREE to anyone interested in angel investing. Knowledge is power, and Dealum is sharing it with the world.

FiBAN publishes the results of their startup questionnaire sent to startups who have sought funding through the FiBAN. The goal of the questionnaire was to acquire information about improving the overall startup experience and to understand the profile of applying startups. FiBAN’s feedback and the overall experience were considered mostly positive, though pointed out some communicative development points in our process. Most startups who applied ended up receiving funding even if not via FiBAN. Most still recommend FiBAN as a funding channel even though only 6% received funding through FiBAN’s dealflow.      

NLC’s Health Impact Fund is their latest flagship fund that aims to bridge this widening healthcare gap between innovation and the market. With a target size of €100 million, it will invest into a highly diversified portfolio of over 80 NLC ventures. Actively managed by NLC’s Fund Management (FM) team, the Fund will invest from the pre-seed stage when value creation and return potential are the highest, with the potential to allocate up to €9m per company in follow-on financing for the most successful ventures up until Series A and Series B. Their Health Impact Fund is the most diversified early-stage opportunity that addresses a major societal problem. The FM and the Health Impact Fund are registered with the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM). More info below.    

Are you interested in the state of the current startup market? Check out the report our member Leapfunder prepared for the Netherlands and Germany for Q2 2023. Read the full report below.    

A new dawn in tech has arrived: The generative AI craze has taken hold—and it’s showing no sign of letting up. What does this new epoch mean for investors and the companies into which they pour their capital? Our latest analyst note, the Emerging Tech Future Report: Generative AI, dives into how the new technology may transform a range of verticals. PitchBook analysts who cover health, ecommerce, fintech, climate tech, and more weigh in on the opportunities in generative AI. Read the full report below.    

Business angels of Slovenia were among the leading partners in preparing The State of Adria Tech report led by Silicon Gardens. The research examines tech companies that have received investments in 2021 or 2022 and have Slovenian, Croatian, or Serbian funders as active participants. The analysis unveils a remarkable growth in investments in tech companies within the Adria region, skyrocketing from around €300 million between 2016 and 2017 to an impressive €3.45 billion between 2021 and 2022. This exponential twelve-fold investment increase presents the region’s exceptional market development over the past five years. Moreover, there has been a five-fold increase in the value of exits and secondaries within the Adria region since the end of 2016, with a total combined value of €4.7B up to 2022. Furthermore, unicorns have escalated from one to six, providing additional evidence of the region’s enormous technological progress in recent years. In addition to these findings, it is noteworthy that regional tech companies that have successfully raised capital operate across a record number of industries. Besides, their extensive use of SaaS as a business model indicates regional tech companies’ impressive expertise in software development. However, the survey also highlights that most of the invested capital in the region comes from the USA (75%) and that the most successful tech companies in terms of operational performance and investment raise base their legal seats outside the Adria region. Read the full report below.    

With the Austrian Investing Report 2022, the pre-IPO investment activity in Austria was comprehensively examined for the first time. The knowledge gained now provides information about the investment motives and the behavior of both anglers and institutional investors. The report is intended to contribute to the design of conducive framework conditions for innovative start-ups. The order was placed jointly by the Austrian Angel Investors Association (aaia), the Austrian Private Equity and Venture Capital Organization (AVCO) and Austria Wirtschaftsservice GmbH (aws). Over 82 percent of the investors surveyed named the business model as a decision-making criterion for investments, and almost 73 percent named the technology. The main motive for investors is the return (21 percent). Supporting the founders (18 percent), enjoying working together (17 percent) and passing on know-how (12 percent) are also mentioned as motives not much less frequently. “The high focus on investments in Austrian growth companies is quite surprising. More than 56 percent of the shares are held in Austrian companies. That’s positive and important for the location,” says Dr. Rudolf Dömötör, Director WU Business Incubator. It is also interesting that according to the report, angel investors diversify more between individual forms of investment than institutional investors. Around 21 percent of the invested assets are in startups, scale-ups and spin-offs, 31 percent in real estate, 21 percent in stocks or bonds and 14 percent in SMEs and existing companies. Institutional investors, on the other hand, act with a stronger focus on startups, scaleups and spin-offs. These groups of companies account for around 77 percent of their invested assets. Read the full report below (in German).    

The DanBAN member survey stands out for its ability to offer a comprehensive understanding of how private investors fund growth companies in Denmark, and it is unique in its approach to measuring impact. This is because all DanBAN members are required to participate, resulting in a 100% response rate and a survey of exceptional quality. Enforcing the reporting requirement entails losing 1-2 % of members each year due to non-compliance. Total investment: In 2022, Direct investments from DanBAN members of €60,6 mill. which is a new record and up 12 % from 2021. Vækstfondens BA-matching loans amounted to €18 mill, down from €19,8 mill in 2021. DanBAN members thus provided startup and early-stage companies with more than €78 mill. in financing in 2022.   Read the full report below.    

The European venture capital (VC) market picked up and proliferated after the 2008 economic breakdown but faced a sharp slowdown in the second half of 2022 and 2023. Starting the recovery from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine elevated geopolitical tensions and caused a global economic slowdown. As for many other industries, the increasing macroeconomic volatility, with rising inflation and supply disruptions, has severely affected the venture capital market. At the same time, groundbreaking changes are taking place in society, not least the emergence of new technologies, that create opportunities for VC investors. Artificial intelligence, blockchain, and deep-tech are just a few. The investor landscape for startups is also changing rapidly, with new types of investors entering the scene, such as new forms of corporate VCs, special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs), and super business angels. To get a better understanding of the VC landscape, leading European business schools and universities have joined their efforts and conducted a broad study of VC practices in Europe. In this report, they present their findings on how European venture capitalists select, value, and structure investment deals, what type of value-added activities they provide, and how successful they are with their investments.   Read the full report below.    

Czechs are among the most skilled investors in startups. Their strategies have generally been successful so far. Almost nine out of ten investors were able to make a profit on their investment, with nearly 12% making more than ten times their investment. Two-fifths of investors consider investing in startups more profitable than other forms of investment. These are the findings of a survey conducted by investment group DEPO Ventures, which is building a unique syndicate of angel investors in addition to angel funds. The survey was also conducted in partnership with the law firm Havel & Partners and the agency CzechInvest. The aim of this fourth annual survey was to map the environment of angel investing in the Czech Republic. Contrary to the widely accepted rule that a large percentage of startups fail, the survey suggests that investments have mostly been successful so far. About two-fifths of investors (41%) consider the performance of their investments in startups to be higher or equivalent to other asset classes. Exit has already been achieved in some of their investments by about 40% of investors, with the number of investors who sold their investments increasing by more than 10 percentage points compared to last year. Almost 86% of them sold their share at a profit. Investments were most commonly evaluated once to five times (51.4%).   Read the full report below.    

FiBAN’s annual study of investments and exits maps the development and impact of angel investments. In 2022, Finnish angels invested 37 million euros in 248 growth companies, says the latest study conducted by the Finnish Business Angels Network (FiBAN), collecting answers from 450 private investors out of FiBAN’s 670 members. 7% of FiBAN members’ investments were made outside of Finland. The most popular countries were Estonia, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. The median investment size remained at the level of 2021 at 20,000 euros. Less than ten percent of FiBAN’s angel investors make half of all investments made through the network. They are so-called super angels whose investments range from hundreds of thousands to millions of euros at a time.   Read the full report below.    

Wondering how to protect your brand? This Discover Guide made by EUIPO in collaboration with EBAN will help you understand whether you have protection for your brand, and, if not, what actions you may want to take to protect it. Brand is often company’s most valuable asset and as such a lot of money is spent on designing, developing and promoting it. There is an assumption amongst many businesses that so long as they use it and register with the national/regional company register then it is theirs. However this is not the case. This Discover Guide will help you understand if you own your brand and if not what actions you might want to take to secure it. Who is this Guide for: All business who have created their brand and are either operating or plan to operate within the European Union.

Get the news you need from NLC’s 2022 Impact Report. Laser-focused on healthtech innovation, NLC successfully built its 100th venture in 2022, aiming to connect much-needed early-stage technologies with patients. This Impact Report offers you easy-to-read infographics on impact, core market data and the founder’s personal note on his drive to change patient lives. Learn how NLC’s innovation achievements in healthcare, society and the environment contribute to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.   Committed to bridging the market and innovation gap, NLC has set up the Health Impact Fund to continue delivering on its promise to patients: advance health, make impact.    

According to the Swiss ICT Investor Club (SICTIC) 2023 investment report, year 2022 turned out to be a very strong for venture capital in Switzerland. This growth was primarily driven by later-stage funding in non ICT sectors, with a few mega-rounds substantially bringing the total funding to a new record. The market segment relevant to SICTIC (early-stage ICT rounds) stagnated. Nonetheless, SICTIC investors contributed – once again – to nearly 70% of funding rounds in that segment, underlining the leading role of SICTIC as a matchmaking platform for early-stage startup investments. Top picks: 254 SICTIC Portfolio Startups raised a cumulative total invested capital of CHF 1.6B and created over 5000 jobs! SICTIC’s impact with 106 financing rounds is significant, with close to 70% of all early-stage ICT/FinTech Investments in Switzerland involving SICTIC Investors in 2022! Total investment received by SICTIC Portfolio startups CHF 1.6B Read the full report below!    

In this EBAN Data Monthly Report, we present an overview of the agrifood entrepreneurial and investment ecosystem in Europe (including Türkiye), with a focus on the investments in Agrifood companies in between 2020 and 2022, and the suggestions by EBAN to enhance private investment in Agrifood sector in Europe. In this report, we adopt FAO’s definition of “Agrifood” which covers “from agriculture production through to food consumption”. The analysis is supported by the data gathered through our partner Dealroom.co, a platform that gathers all publicly disclosed information on funding rounds made in Europe and beyond as well as through research on the literature, and the support of EBAN members who have contributed individually through interviews and as a group during the co-creation workshops. In Europe, private investment has been growing in the agrifood sector. Looking at the European VC rounds, investments in food startups increased 12 times between 2013 and 2020 and foodtech startup valuations increased 1.5 times between 2019 and 2020. Then, in only 1 year, between 2020 and 2021, investments in food startups have more than doubled . The effect of the COVID-19 pandemic is highly related to this increase. Focusing on the Business Angels investment in Europe, a significant growth can be seen in investment in food between 2019 and 2021, but the sector remains limited compared to the others, such as fintech and health. It is important to note that the agrifood investment and entrepreneurial ecosystem is developing at a different pace in different regions, even though it is central to the European economy.    

Supernovas’ latest study found that the 2021-2022 period had seen the most venture capital investment in women-founded scale-ups with over USD 9 billion invested over those two years. European investors have been providing the largest share of VC capital for European scale-ups founded by women since 2020. But there’s still a lot of work to be done to reach a more equitable gender balance. Out of over 7 000 European scaleups, only 604 (8%) had at least one woman on their founding team. That’s why we continue to make women a central focus of our efforts. Findings reveal benefits of women in leadership and the barriers to their success Women-founded businesses are significantly more likely to focus on sustainability, with nearly 1 in 4 women-led scale-ups working to fight climate change Women-founded businesses converted a higher percentage of rounds from Seed to Series A (funding during the early stages of their business growth) in a shorter period of time than the European benchmark, but are still disadvantaged in late-stage investment rounds There is an especially high growth of women founded scale-ups in Austria, Germany, and Switzerland — they grew 16.6x since 2017     The full Supernovas study will be published 16 May  

EBAN Impact Publishes its 2nd Annual Impact Investing Report – Reporting on Investor Background and Investment Characteristics EBAN Impact is delighted to announce the publication of our 2nd edition of 2021 Impact Investing Report #EIIS2021. EBAN Impact is the home for all EBAN members interested in impact investing and social entrepreneurship. The Impact Investing Report provides information on the profile and background of impact investors, as well as the characteristics that define their investments. EBAN Impact’s Investing Report is based on a survey launched in April 2020 led by Juan Alvarez de Lara, board member of EBAN, chairman of EBAN Impact, and founder of Seed&Click, and sponsored by Dr. Lisa Hehenberger and Dr. Kai Hockerts, professors at ESADE Business School and Copenhagen Business School respectively.  

This report explores the latest trends in deep tech, VC, university spinouts, and more. It found that European deep tech startups raised $17.7B in 2022, a 22% decrease from 2021. The four main categories in deep tech are Novel AI, Future of Computing, Novel Energy, and Space Tech. Climate Tech also has a growing share of deep tech funding, from 6% in 2016 to 34% in 2022.  

THE NEXT SOCIETY, a five-year project aiming to reinforce the innovation ecosystem in the Middle East and North Africa, supported 200 startups, 65% of which have a direct impact on SDGs. It helped 15 of these companies raise €700K+ in funding and 27 others create 85 jobs. This report summarises the project’s results and offers insights for future players in the region.  

As the private equity industry emerges from a tumultuous 2022—marked by volatile macroeconomic conditions driven by soaring interests and geopolitical tensions—its participants are bracing for another challenging year. PitchBook reached out to dealmakers, investors, investment bankers and other service providers to get their take on what the industry will need to prepare for in 2023.    

After a record year for impact startups in 2021, investment into the impact ecosystem is down 25% in 2022, with $57B raised globally. In 2022, impact investment in the US fell 36%, while Europeʼs final account for 2022 came in at +1%. Climate tech startups raised $44B in 2022, almost 80% of all impact funding.    

In their recent report dealroom.co analysed over 201 tech ecosystems. According to them, the coming years will be dominated by radical innovation and a need for next-generation types of tech ecosystems that can bring together entrepreneurship, patient capital, deep R&D, and science. So rather than measuring a status quo, this set of actionable benchmarks is meant as a tool to help ecosystems understand and measure their maturity and preparedness for the future.

According to Crunchbase, the global economy will fall into a recession in the first quarter of 2023 (if it’s not already). Recessions typically last 15 months (2008 was 18) followed by 48 months of expansion. With this publication Crunchbase endeavours to reveal which sectors will be the best and most resilient investment and growth in the coming months.

Atomico published its ”State of European Tech” report: EU tech faces new challenges, but remains resilient. After a record-breaking first half year, the flywheel slowed this summer in response to a tough macro environment. But as the report reveals, opportunities and reasons to believe in European Tech remain. This paper also looks at Ukraine’s tech industry, which has underscored the role tech can play during times of crisis.

ACA publishes the Angel Funders Report annually to increase awareness about angel investor activity and build a deeper understanding of the investing environment. According to the 2022 report, ACA members invested $950 million in 2021 in more than 1,000 companies. On average, they invested a total of $5.3 million each, a 15% increase from 2020.

AFME, EBAN, and 10 other organisations published the fifth edition of the “Capital Markets Union – Key Performance Indicators” report. Over the last five years, this report has tracked the progress of Europe’s capital markets against nine key performance indicators. The 5th CMU progress report finds that the EU as a whole is falling further behind other jurisdictions in terms of its global attractiveness as a place for businesses to access deep pools of capital and go public. While there have been some considerable policy achievements over the last five years, including the EU maintaining its global leadership on sustainable finance and improving its FinTech regulatory ecosystem, our report shows there are several obstacles hampering the progress of the CMU.

The new Report on the angel market in Poland shows how this area of investment activity is shaping up.  Venture Capital funds have been operating on the Polish market for a long time, but the sector of private investors is still at an early stage of development. The authors of the report estimate that there are currently 680 active business angels in Poland. In Western European countries there are usually at least several thousand. The results of the survey confirm that the angel investment market in Poland is still growing. As many as 40% of the surveyed business angels have been investing for only three years or less, and more than half of the business angels (53%) have made between one and six investments during their entire business angel activity.   According to the report, investments in startups are, for the time being, the domain of men (80% of those surveyed), but the 20% share of female investors in the market is a result that stands out among European countries – Spain, Croatia, Latvia, Slovakia, Ireland or Finland have lower results.   Business angels in Poland are mainly middle-aged, most of them are between 35 and 49 years old – this age bracket accounts for as much as 70%. To date, they have most often been entrepreneurs (55% of those surveyed) and corporate managers (30%). The report shows that these two professional groups are joined by doctors, lawyers, or IT professionals.

The EIF VC Survey, the EIF Private Equity Mid-Market Survey, and the EIF Business Angels Survey (the largest combined regular survey exercises among General Partners and Business Angels on a pan-European level) provide an opportunity to retrieve unique market insights. This publication is based on the results of the 2022 VC Survey, conducted by the EIF with the support of Invest Europe. The paper focuses on the market sentiment as well as the impact of the current geopolitical situation and difficult macroeconomic environment. The study looks at the current situation, developments in the recent past and expectations for the future. It highlights substantial challenges, but also opportunities as perceived by survey participants. The main results are summarised and compared over time. The publication provides a valuable picture of the developments in the VC market in 2022 as well as an outlook for the near future. The EIF Working Papers are designed to make available to a wider readership selected topics and studies in relation to EIF´s business. The Working Papers are edited by EIF’s Research & Market Analysis and are typically authored or co-authored by EIF staff or are written in cooperation with EIF.

Crunchbase Reports that Global VC Pullback Is Dramatic in Q3 2022: The big global venture capital pullback we were all expecting is truly here. Venture and growth investors in private companies scaled back their investment pace significantly as the slump in the public markets stretched into the third quarter. Venture funding for the third quarter of 2022 totaled $81 billion, down by $90 billion (53%) year over year and by $40 billion (33%) quarter over quarter, according to a Crunchbase News analysis. While funding for the most recent quarter will increase a little in the coming months as stealth fundings are announced, this is a huge drop in funding compared to prior quarters.

June 2022 database release The Spinout.fyi database is publishing its raw survey data, in order to level the information playing field for spinout founders who often enter negotiations not knowing what to expect. The database includes 143 unique entries from 71 universities from around the world. 47% of the universities are based in the UK, 37% in Europe, and 11% in the US. 41% of the spinouts raised Seeds, 17% raised Series As, 2% raised Series Bs, 15% were pre-funding, 3% no longer exist, 3% IPO’d, 7% exited via M&A. The universities covered by this survey include: Stanford University, Harvard University and Columbia University in the US; Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial, UCL in the UK; ETH Zürich and EPFL in Switzerland, Trinity College Dublin in Ireland, Ecole Normale Supérieure in Paris, and many more. The spinouts in the database cover a wide range of products, which we summarised into 6 categories: Software, Hardware, Therapeutics, Materials, Medical, and Diagnostics.

EBAN Publishes its Annual Statistics Compendium – Reporting on the Activity of Business Angels and Business Angel Networks in Europe Data on the investments made across the 38 different European countries measured in the report indicates that the visible angel investment market on the European continent has grown substantially from the 767 Million Euros invested in 2020, to a record 1,456 Million Euros invested in 2021 (+90% from the previous year). In 2021, angel investors were involved in over 5070 observed funding rounds, consisting in both initial investments and follow-on investments made in European based start-ups. Based on the reports provided by national federations, local angel networks, and national venture capital associations, there are approximately 39400 active business angel investors on the European continent who are part of a local investment network or association. Fill the form below to subscribe and download the report Email* When you submit the form, check your inbox to confirm your subscription Name* Surname* Organization* Privacy* I´m authorizing EBAN (The European Trade Association for Business Angels, Seed Funds and Early Stage Market Players, located in Brussels, 1040 BE) to save and use my personal data according to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This information is used by EBAN exclusively for sending newsletters and other email campaigns about the latest developments in the global entrepreneurial, innovation, and early-stage ecosystem. Subscribe and Download {{ vc_btn:title=Download+Statistics+Infographic&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2022%252F10%252F2021-venngage-cropped.png%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }} {{ vc_btn:title=Download+EBAN%27s+Statistics+Compendium+2021&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2022%252F10%252FStatistics-Compendium-2021-FINAL-3.pdf%7Ctitle%3ADownload%2520EBAN%27s%2520Statistics%2520Compendium%25202021%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

New study reveals investments worth £2 billion made by female angels helping to create 10,000 UK jobs First comprehensive picture of female angel investment in the UK reveals thousands of female angels. More than £2bn has been invested in UK companies via deals involving female angel investors over the last 10 years, backing over 4,000 businesses and helping to create 10,000 jobs. New drive to attract fresh investment as figures show just 14% of angel investors are women. Almost 25% of all companies backed by female angels were female-founded, higher than the average of 19%. Female angel investors have helped drive more than £2bn of investment in companies across the UK in the past decade, a new study reveals today.

UNH Research Finds Angel Investor Behavior Can Be Influenced by Ego Angel investors—wealthy individuals who provide essential funds for start-ups—often invest under conditions of extreme uncertainty. While their funds can be vital to early-stage ventures, researchers at the University of New Hampshire found that angels’ egos can play a significant role in their investment decisions—the bigger the ego, the larger and more diverse the deal and the lower the number of co-investors. Read the Press Release   Read the Study

EIF Business Angels Survey 2021/22: Market Sentiment The EIF Business Angels Survey, together with the EIF VC Survey and the EIF Private Equity Mid-Market Survey (the largest combined regular survey exercises among GPs and Business Angels on a pan-European level) provide an opportunity to retrieve unique market insights. This publication is based on the results of the 2021/22 EIF Business Angels Survey. The paper focuses on the market sentiment and the impact of COVID-19. The study looks at the market situation, developments in the recent past and expectations for the future. The main results are summarised and compared over time. The publication provides a valuable insight of the developments and the markets in 2021/22, as well as an outlook for the near future. Read the Full Report

Q2 VC Funding Globally Falls Significantly As Startup Investors Pull Back Global funding slowed dramatically in the second quarter of 2022 as investors shied away from later-stage funding bets. It also marked the first quarter with a significant drop in funding since the beginning of 2020. Funding reached $120 billion, the lowest amount recorded for a single quarter since the beginning of 2021, Crunchbase data shows. Read the Full Report

European Venture Report – Q2 2022 European venture funding is on pace to surpass €100 billion for the second consecutive year, but dealmaking activity could slow as markets enter correction territory. In the Q2 2022 European Venture Report, Pitchbook explores the key trends that shaped the continent’s ecosystem in the first six months of the year. Read the Full Report

Ranking investors – EMEA 2022 40% of startups backed by top quartile investors go on to raise Series A, compared to just 7% for bottom quartile funds, and only the top 2% of funds have invested in two or more unicorns at Seed. Dealroom.co has brought purely quantitative analysis to the assessment of VC investors in EMEA, and why this ranking matters. Read the Full Report

Empowering European Digital Leaders: After Regulation, Let’s Quickly Promote Innovation Europe’s landmark digital regulation has laid the groundwork in record time for a new framework that will hold digital giants accountable and limit their monopoly position by dusting off competition law. After the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the European Union is once again asserting itself as a normative power with the adoption of an unprecedented regulatory arsenal that lays down new obligations in terms of content management and competition: the Digital Services Act (DSA) and the Digital Markets Act (DMA). Read the Full Report

2021 Central and Eastern Europe Private Equity Statistics The 18th annual edition of the Central and Eastern Europe Private Equity Statistics delves into countries across CEE to show the spread of private equity and venture capital activity, as well as development of regional powerhouses.   About Invest Europe: Invest Europe is the world’s largest association of private capital providers. They represent Europe’s private equity, venture capital and infrastructure investment firms, as well as their investors, including some of Europe’s largest pension funds and insurers. Read the Full Report

The Performance of European Private Equity Benchmark Report 2021 The research shows that European private capital continued to strongly outperform listed equity benchmarks, delivering superior performance to long-term investors to support pensions and savings as markets rebounded from the effects of COVID-19. About Invest Europe: Invest Europe is the world’s largest association of private capital providers. They represent Europe’s private equity, venture capital and infrastructure investment firms, as well as their investors, including some of Europe’s largest pension funds and insurers. Read the Full Report

The State of European Insurtech 2022 This report wants to bring transparency through data and qualitative insights on the current state and trends of European and global Insurtech. The report has been has been developed by Dealroom.co, Mundi Ventures, MAPFRE, and NN Group, drawing on the partnersʼ collective insurance innovation expertise and insights from Insurtech innovators and leaders. Read the Full Report

The Angel Market in 2021: Metrics Indicate Strong Market The angel investor market in 2021 exhibited an increase in active investors, the number of investments, and the total dollars invested by angels, according to the Center for Venture Research at the University of New Hampshire. Total angel investments in 2021 were $29.1 billion, an increase of 15.2% over 2020. A total of 69,060 entrepreneurial ventures received angel funding in 2021, an increase of 7.1% over 2020 investments. The number of active investors in 2021 also increased to 363,460 as compared to 334,680 in 2020, an increase of 8.6%. The deal size for 2021 increased by 7.6% from 2020, reflecting the higher valuations. For the second consecutive year the seed and start-up stage market were the predominant investment stage for angels. About CVR: The Center for Venture Research is a multidisciplinary research unit of the Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics at the University of New Hampshire. The Center’s principal area of expertise is in the study of early stage equity financing for high growth ventures. Read the Full Report

Ukrainian ІТ Industry: Reboot in the Wartime The rapid growth of the industry by more than 50% during 2019-2021 continued up to the War and, according to the National Bank of Ukraine, in February 2022 reached the highest monthly indicator of export in the history of the Ukrainian IT market – $839 million, which is 43% more than for the same period in 2021 ($480 million). According to the results of 2021, the industry provided 37% in the export of computer services and USD 6.8 billion of the income to the economy of Ukraine, paid UAH 23.5 billion worth of taxes and fees. At the beginning of 2022, 285,000 IT professionals were working in the industry. During the first quarter of 2022, the IT industry provided record-high $2 billion of export income in wartime. A similar figure in 2021 was $1.44 billion. Therefore, the volume of IT exports has increased by 28%. In March 2022, the Ukrainian IT industry maintained 96% of computer services exports ($ 522 million) compared to the similar period last year ($ 546 million) and proved its resilience in the time of instability and increased risks.

Ukraine IT Report 2021 In 2021, the Ukrainian IT industry grew by 36% from USD 5 billion to USD 6.8 billion in exports. At the same time, the number of specialists increased from 244 thousand to 285 thousand. Thus, over the past three years, the industry has more than doubled in exports and has grown by more than 50% in the number of specialists. The study used open data and information from state registers, as well as a survey of 98 Ukrainian IT companies, which by size correspond to the structure of companies participating in industry associations. Ukraine IT Report 2021 presents both short-term (up to one year) assessments and medium-term (until 2025) forecasts for the development of the IT industry, specialized education, as well as a comparison of Ukraine as an IT country with the neighboring countries. The study also provides data on the state of the office real estate market and the impact of Covid-19 on the format of work of the companies.

Ranked: The Most Prominent VC Investors in EMEA – 2022 Dealroom.co presents a practical ranking of venture capital investors, a tool to help founders navigate the vast, and at times opaque venture market, for each stage of their growth.

EBAN Impact Investing Survey We are proud to be driving research surrounding impact investing in startups that are dedicated to a societal or environmental cause. This is why we are supporting the EBAN Impact Investing Survey. That way we empower impact investors by giving them the data and the facts to make informed investments. Participate Here {{ vc_btn:title=Download+the+EBAN+Impact+Investing+Report&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2020%252F12%252FEBANIMPACTINVESTING2020-REPORT-2.pdf%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

Global M&A Report Global M&A activity bifurcated for much of Q1 2022, with previously negotiated deals closing on time while announced activity diminished due to the uncertainty created by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to PitchBook latest Global M&A report.

European Venture Report The Q1 European Venture Report takes a deep dive into the key trends that shaped this first quarter, breaking down activity across dealmaking, exits and fundraising, as well as regions. Highlights include: Late-stage VC continues to dominate deal value figures, accounting for 71.6% of total capital invested. Exit value plummeted from 2021’s heights amid a widespread tech public equity sell-off. VC fundraising got off to a solid start in terms of capital raised, but fund count dropped significantly

EstBAN members invested 29.9M euros into startups, which is an all time high. From the total amount, 13.5M was angel investments, 14.9M through funds and 1.45M euros was invested through crowd funding.

France Angels presents the “Bilan des Investissements 2021”

Depo Ventures presents Business Angels in The Czech Republic 2021 The aim of the report is to map the environment of the angel investing in Czech Republic. To find out how angel investors invest and what their problems are.

Amid war, supply chain volatility and an inflationary environment, the report dives into how the $1.1 trillion foodtech industry fared in Q1 2022, and where the $9.2B of VC investment raised this quarter was headed. Download the Report

When we talk about euro area financial integration, we mean the extent to which financial services are available under the same rules and conditions in all countries that use the euro. In a well-integrated financial system, assets with the same risk-return characteristics cost the same, irrespective of the country in which they are traded. Financial integration therefore contributes to the uniform transmission of the European Central Bank’s (ECB) monetary policy across the euro area.

The European Financial Stability and Integration Review (EFSIR) is an annual review published by the European Commission. Among other topics, it reports on developments in finance, markets and banking, and has a special focus on financial stability.

Investment activity of private startup investors reached a new high in 2021, following the decline of covid-year 2020. Majority of growth funding went to companies closing their first investment round. In 2021, private early-stage investors invested altogether 52,3M€ into 626 companies. Majority of the investments were placed in companies that received their first investment, shows FiBAN’s annual member survey, responded by 480 private investors.

Do We Need EU Social Taxonomy? By EVPA EU standards for sustainable finance can encourage investments that will enable a green and just transition, but only if they act as an accurate barometer and truly prevent green and social washing. Social taxonomy ABC. The European Commission’s Platform on Sustainable Finance published its final report on social taxonomy on 28 February. This comes in the framework of the EU’s legislative package on sustainable finance and EU taxonomy, which aims to create a common language for how companies and investors disclose green and social investments. Social taxonomy is about defining standards for social investments and for what activities contribute to achieving social objectives. This is important because the net zero transition will not happen without also taking social aspects into account: we need a green and just transition. Companies and investors cannot go ‘green’ whilst ignoring basic rights and decent working conditions. The transition needs to take place in “an economy that works for people” too. The report proposes a similar social taxonomy structure as the current green taxonomy: developing social objectives, defining types of substantial contributions, ‘do no significantly harm’ criteria; and minimum safeguards. It outlines 3 main objectives: decent work, adequate living standards and wellbeing, and inclusive and sustainable communities and societies.

The Joint Research Centre (JRC), the European Commission’s science and knowledge service presents: In Search of EU Unicorns – What Do We Know About Them? This paper provides insights into the geographical and sectorial distribution of EU unicorns. Using the Unicorn club data from Dealroom up to mid-2021, it explores where they are located, how old they are and how they reached unicorn status. The analysis takes the form of a comparative study of unicorns from the EU, the US and China.

Invest in Software Companies – How to Assess SaaS Companies by Verve Ventures This report aims to give a framework for assessing SaaS companies and foster an understanding of this business model.

Dealroom.co presents: Sweden Tech Ecosystem: Report 2021 2021 was a record year for the Swedish ecosystem. VC investment more than doubled in the last year alone, hitting an all-time high of €7.8B. More on Sweden’s rise to the ranks as one of Europe’s leading startup ecosystems in our latest report made in partnership with Startup Sweden, The Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth, Swedish Institute, Business Sweden and Vinnova.

Dealroom.co present Danish Biotech: a Rapid Rise Covid provided a big publicity opportunity for biotech. Investors of all kinds started taking interest in the companies that had the power to shorten the pandemic, and save millions of lives, through things like vaccine development and rapid variant analysis. For Dansk Biotech’s spring summit, we dived into the rich emerging biotech ecosystem in Denmark, among the fastest-growing in the world. Download the Report

PitchBook presents European VC Valuations Report. European VC valuations continued to break records in 2021 across all stages as investors competed fiercely to participate in outsized rounds. Pandemic-induced growth for tech startups and an increase in nontraditional investors helped drive the astonishing climb in companies’ price tags. Our 2021 Annual European VC Valuations report takes an in-depth look at the key trends across stages, industries and regions that shaped valuations last year.

MAGNiTT presents Emerging Venture Markets Report. With over $6.9B raised through 1,300+ deals and 80+ startup exits recorded, 2021 was a defining year for the Venture Capital ecosystem in Emerging Venture Markets.

Joint Research Centre (JRC) presents Tackling the Scale-up Gap The number of scale-up businesses in the EU, particularly unicorns, lags behind the US and China. This is partially attributed to a deficit in scale-up finance. Based on an a webinar between experts which took place on 5th October 2021, this paper reports and comments on the available evidence of the scale-up financing gap in the EU and discusses its causes and consequences.

Deep Knowledge Group presents Healthcare Predictive Analytics Market Overview Healthcare Predictive Analytics market is projected to grow at a rate of 28.9% in terms of value, from USD 3.74 Billion in 2019 to reach USD 28.77 Billion by 2027. Healthcare Data Analytics companies secured almost $2.0 billion in venture capital funding in 2021 thereby showing the trend for future growth.

EVPA presents Navigating impact measurement and management – How to integrate impact throughout the investment journey which demonstrates how impact measurement and management is deeply embedded into the DNA of investing for impact and how it drives decision-making throughout the whole investment journey, from investment strategy to exit. This report also harmonises the work done by leading organisations in the impact ecosystem by clarifying the connections and complementarities among different IMM initiatives in each phase of the investment journey.

Atomico presents The State of European Tech, the most comprehensive data-driven analysis of European technology. What does Europe’s tech talent look like now? And how has Covid-19 affected the region’s tech hubs? Founders and companies have emerged resilient but their mental wellbeing has been tested to the extreme. Demand for talent has bounced back from the lows of spring. And virtual working has flung open the doors of the ecosystem and spurred the growth of emerging hubs.

SICTIC, Swiss ICT Investor Club presents Swiss Angel Investor Handbook. This handbook is a condensed collection of wisdom from many successful angel investors, and will familiarize you with concepts of investing in seed and early-stage technology startups in Switzerland; help you learn the language that you’ll encounter in investment term sheets; point out 7 caveats and provide checklists that you can use when making your own startup investments.

EBAN is happy to share the new Template Convertible Loan Agreement for Angel Investments, by Austrian Angel Investor Association (AAIA). The template below. Template Convertible Loan Agreement

EBAN Publishes its Annual Statistics Compendium – Reporting on the Activity of Business Angels and Business Angel Networks in Europe EBAN, the European Business Angels Network, is delighted to announce the publication of our Annual Statistics Compendium – Europe’s most extensive annual research on the activity of business angels and business angel networks. EBAN’s Statistics Compendium is based not only on the information provided by European business angel networks, Federations of BANs, individual business angels and but also based on data published in 35 other sources amongst which include: Dealroom.co, Crunchbase, PitchBook, the European Commission, National Venture Capital Associations, national and regional research studies on angel investment. Data on the investments made across the 37 different countries measured in the report indicates that the visible angel investment market on the European continent has declined from 804 Million Euros in 2019 to 767 Million Euros in 2020. Fill the form below to subscribe and download the report Email* When you submit the form, check your inbox to confirm your subscription Name* Surname* Organization* Privacy* I´m authorizing EBAN (The European Trade Association for Business Angels, Seed Funds and Early Stage Market Players, located in Brussels, 1040 BE) to save and use my personal data according to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This information is used by EBAN exclusively for sending newsletters and other email campaigns about the latest developments in the global entrepreneurial, innovation, and early-stage ecosystem. Subscribe and Download {{ vc_btn:title=Download+EBAN%27s+Statistics+Compendium+2020&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2021%252F12%252FEBAN-Statistics-Compendium-2021-1.pdf%7Ctitle%3ADownload%2520EBAN%27s%2520Statistics%2520Compendium%25202021%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

Deep Knowledge Group presents Investment Digest Longevity Industry Q3 2021 This Investment Digest summarizes key observations in the private equity and venture capital ecosystem of the rapidly evolving and exponentially growing Longevity Industry. Aging Analytics Agency in cooperation with InvestTech Advanced Solutions have assembled information about key industry trends, more than 23,000 longevity companies, 50 leading investors, and more than 600 longevity-focused publicly traded corporations.

BGTA Accelerator and INSEAD present EU China Greentech whitepaper. Launched in 2021, the China and Europe Green Corridor seeks to increase EU–China collaborations on greentech, particularly in the form of public and private partnerships. This whitepaper is a roadmap for decisionmakers informing the future direction of the Corridor. We hope the contents of this report spur interest in best-leveraging the development of greentech in the EU and China moving forward.

The EU lags behind both the US and China in its number of high growth entrepreneurial firms (HGFs). These firms play a critical role in economic development as sources of innovation, investment and employment. New research on business angels identifies potential causes for this lag and offers some solutions. Colin Mason, Professor of Entrepreneurship at the University of Glasgow, Dr Tiago Botelho, University of East Anglia and Joe Duggett of consultants SQW focussed their recent research work on the island of Ireland.  

Google for Startups, Atomico and Dealroom.co present “Coming of age: Central and Eastern European startups” report. Companies founded in CEE have now a combined enterprise value of over €186 billion, up 19x since 2010. But it has not been an overnight success. The CEE region has created huge success stories, especially in enterprise software thanks to some of the best tech developers in the world. However, many of these successes have been bootstrapped for a long time and the region still lacks a strong VC scene, especially at later stages beyond series A.  

AFME Finance for Europe presents Capital Markets Union – Key Performance Indicators, the fourth edition in a series of annual reports which tracks the development of the European capital markets ecosystem. The report, which EBAN contributed to, assesses Europe’s progress in improving the depth of its capital markets against 8 key performance indicators, as well as providing an industry perspective on some of the enablers of European capital markets growth and ongoing barriers to integration and development.  

The supply of entrepreneurial finance in Europe is constrained by the geographical fragmentation of its capital market. The need to facilitate more cross-border investing by business angels – the main source of early stage finance – is recognized. A study of business angels on the island of Ireland identifies three constraints on cross-border investing: (1) lack of information on cross-border investment opportunities; (2) the preference of angels to invest locally; and (3) tax incentives that are only available for investments in the angel’s own country. Increasing cross-border investment requires mechanisms that build relationships between business angels in different countries. Authors: Colin Mason, Adam Smith Business School, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland, UK Tiago Botelho, Norwich Business School, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK Joe Duggett, Director at SQW, Cambridge, UK

Although there are a handful of studies on business angel investment returns, the business angel literature has given little or no attention to exits and the exit strategy. This is surprising given that a primary objective of investing is to achieve a capital gain through some form of liquidity event. Using the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) as an interpretative heuristic, we examine how exits happen: specifically, what are the motivations to seek an exit and to what extent are they planned or opportunistic? Based on multiple case studies in which business angels were invited to tell the story of their most recent exit(s), the evidence suggests that the majority of liquidity events are the outcome of planned behaviour. We propose a typology of angel-backed investment exits as the basis for identifying future directions for research and developing practical advice to angels on effective business practices. Authors: Tiago Botelho, Norwich Business School, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK Richard Harrison, University of Edinburgh Management School, Edinburgh, UK Colin Mason, Adam Smith Business School, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland, UK

In March 2020 startups’ prospects looked bleak. Consumer demand had cratered. Travel ceased. Struggling businesses shed workers or closed. Global VC spending dropped 17% in the first quarter compared to the preceding one, with the number of rounds down 5%, according to Crunchbase. In China alone the number of venture rounds plunged 74% in just two months. Then everything changed. Covid-19, which made rapid adopters of us all, slashed a bright line between how we once lived and how we will live. It is a line across which entrepreneurs are uniquely positioned to ferry us. That is why, for many economies, startups are leading the way back to economic vitality. In the first half of 2020 venture funding worldwide was $148 billion. In the first half of 2021 it had soared 95% to $288 billion, with increases at every stage, according to Crunchbase. Startups also are benefiting from new investment channels, including democratizing startups like Robinhood; crowdfunding; and special purchase acquisition companies (although some increasingly are skeptical of SPACs.) For entrepreneurial ecosystems, 2021 is turning out to be a year of remarkable growth and productivity. And the dispersal of success—already underway before the pandemic—has only accelerated. Download the Report

NACO is pleased to present the 2021 Report on Angel Investing in Canada, authored by world-renowned expert Colin Mason, Professor of Entrepreneurship at the University of Glasgow. This report has tracked a cumulative $1.12 billion of angel investment. Building differently means identifying and amplifying new voices and creating new systems and structures that provide entrepreneurs in all regions with the tools they need to bring their ideas to life. Entrepreneurship can lift up entire communities by generating wealth, creating jobs, and introducing new innovations that provide a greater quality of life for our communities. As the main source of capital for Canada’s entrepreneurs, angel investors are in virtually every community and play a vital role in the development of local entrepreneurial ecosystems by providing funding, mentorship, and access to client networks. Angel investors fuel the “scale-up” pipeline that flows into the venture capital industry by putting capital-at-risk in local communities.

Following it’s 2020 report, Dankse Bank has recently updated The State of Nordic Impact Startup report, which is based on a mapping of 1,200+ impact start-ups across the Nordic region, based on data from 1.230 start-ups and 1.365 funding rounds, and a deep dive on the Green Growth startups of the future. A few highlights of the findings: Investment into Nordic impact startups has grown 25x in the last 10 years, reaching €1.6B in 2020. Venture capital in the Nordics is significantly more impact focused than other regions, with 34% of all VC investment in the Nordics going to impact companies, vs. 17% for Europe as a whole. Impact startups receive 25% more job applications than non-impact startups. 39% of seed-stage Nordic impact startups raise a Series A within 36 months. Compared to 19% for a benchmark of European tech startups. Dowload the Report Here

          Danish Business Angels (DanBAN) and its members have made hundreds of investments in both Danish and foreign start-ups. The latest figures from the annual member survey of 2020 activities show that DanBAN’s nearly 250 Business Angels have joined forces and invested approximately DKK 365 million (49 mill.€) in start- ups – that is investments equivalent to an average of DKK 1 million per day in 2020. In addition, since 2016, the total investments have amounted to an accumulated total of DKK 1.1 billion (147 mill.€). DanBAN’s 2020 annual member survey shows that the covid-19 pandemic has not affected the Business Angels interest in investing. On the contrary, the number of investments has increased by almost 75%, resulting in 365 investments in growth-stage businesses in 2020. This has resulted in DanBAN reaching a total investment sum of DKK 1.1 billion for the first time over the past 5 years. In 2020 alone, the total investment sum was DKK 365 million (49 mill.€), which is an increase of almost 42% compared to 2019. The median investment (“ticket size”) in a company has increased by 15% to DKK 220,000 (30.000€) per Business Angel. The members of the association have despite the circumstances of the pandemic managed to achieve the same competitive returns as in 2019. The analysis shows that the MoneyBackMultiple (MBM) in 2020 is equivalent to 3.0, which is similar to the previous year’s same high level. This figure is based on the 32 exits made in 2020, an increase of 10% compared to last year’s exits. The high level of engagement is also reflected in the number of member co-ownerships in companies, which this year is at an average of 5.5 companies with a median of 4. Vækstfonden, as one of our partners, is also an important source of capital for early stage companies. Our member survey shows that the products of Vækstfonden have leveraged our members’ investments with DKK 320 million in loans. This has resulted in a total of almost DKK 700 million (94 mill. €) in capital provided to Danish start-ups through DanBAN. With over 270 members today, DanBAN is Denmark’s largest professional non-profit network for Business Angels. DanBAN has an annual deal flow of 600 start-ups. DanBAN is an association that is 100% privately funded by its members and partners. Capital seeking start-ups can freely get in touch with the association’s members at no cost. DanBAN’s many members possess hands-on knowledge as former successful entrepreneurs who are now re-investing their time and part of their wealth in the next generation of passionate entrepreneurs. In 2020, the members of DanBAN consisted of 90.1% men and 9.9% women and members’ ages varied from 27 to 80 years. The average tenure as a Business Angel is just under 8 years but stretches all the way to an astounding 46 years. Among start-ups, 16.9% consist of mixed teams of both female and male founders. More than 20% of start-ups have at least 1 female founder. Quote: Jesper Jarlbæk, Chairman of the Board “DanBAN’s annual survey is without comparison the best mapping of Business Angel activities in Denmark and probably also in Europe. In a year challenged by CoVID-19, DanBAN achieved progress on all fronts. Our investment rate grew by more than 40% and with Vækstfonden, we secured more than DKK 700 million to Danish start-ups. This creates the jobs of the future and contributes to the well-being of us all.” Quote: Michael Hansen, CEO “This year’s membership analysis shows that our members have found an extra gear through the crisis and increased investment activity. We briefly saw members hedging their existing portfolio before actively investing again. With the results from 2020, we can see that we helped to keep a steady hand under the Danish start-ups and more provided working capital than ever before, and we are quite proud of that.”

The impact investing industry is increasing in sophistication, as more investors enter the fold and seek to create positive social and environmental impact alongside financial returns. For generations, one such group of investors, faith-based investors – from individuals to religious institutions – have engaged with values-based investing, through negative screening, divestment, and shareholder advocacy, among other investment strategies. As impact investing continues to evolve, more faith-based investors are seeking to act on their faith through impact investing. In order to allocate more capital to impact investments, faith-based investors indicate that more research and data on performance is needed. As such, the GIIN has produced this issue brief to provide access to practical information about impact investing. Drawing on responses to the GIIN’s 2020 Annual Impact Investor Survey, as well as data, insights, and findings from the Impact Investing Decision-Making: Insights on Financial Performance, this brief: Pursuing Faith-Based Impact Investing: Insights on Financial Performance, provides an introduction to impact investing, a dynamic decision-making approach to informing impact investment strategies, an overview of the financial performance of impact investments, and a spotlight on a faith-based impact investor: Trinity Wall Street.  

Marathon Venture Capital are providing evidence that the network of Greek entrepreneurs and technologists is consistently growing and its underlying value is increasingly materializing. By various accounts, the Greek startup industry has now reached an inflection point, triggering a virtuous circle. The Greek Startup Industry: Investments and Exits, 2010-2020 is a publication documenting the industry’s evolution, focusing on the facts. Such include, among others, investment figures and related statistics. Marathon Venture Capital has made an effort to track every single technology company with a Greek founder –our definition of a Greek startup– that raised an investment round and/or completed an acquisition or IPO since 2010. Their inputs include publicly available sources such as Crunchbase and media publications, together with proprietary Marathon data. While there most probably exist more cases they did not manage to capture, they believe this is the most extensive research on Greek startups published to date. For the first time, Marathon Venture Capital are also sharing a full list of such publicly available data in spreadsheet format, hoping that opening up such a resource to the community will spark further interest and create more opportunities in the space.  

AWS are happy to present the Angel Investing Report 2020 in cooperation with the Austrian Angel Investing Association (aaia) and Austria Wirtschaftsservice (aws i2 Business Angels) on the 9th March 2021 at 03:00 pm. Austrian Business Angels are an important player in the funding lifecycle of startups and support talented founders with their expertise, network, and capital. They are the earliest believers and with this report, AWS wants to quantify their impact and dig deeper into the investor personality, investment behavior & portfolio dynamics. 2020 was a particularly interesting year to analyze investment behavior in a crisis and to derive lessons learned. In addition, this report also gives insights for startups in how to approach angel investors, what they are currently looking for and what to expect in 2021. Sign up for the Launch Event here.

2020 was an unprecedented and remarkable year, and also a year with high uncertainty and increased information needs. The EIF VC Survey, the EIF Private Equity Mid-Market Survey, and the EIF Business Angels Survey (the largest regular survey exercises among GPs and Business Angels on a pan-European level) provide an opportunity to retrieve unique market insights. On an exceptional basis, two waves for each of the three surveys were performed in 2020. This publication summarizes and compares the main results, providing a detailed picture of the recent developments. The paper focuses on the market sentiment and the impact of COVID-19 on investors, their portfolio, fundraising and investments (including ESG considerations), and finally, it shows respondents’ opinion with regard to crisis-related policy measures.

EBAN Publishes its 2019 Statistics Compendium – Reporting on the Activity of Business Angels and Business Angel Networks in Europe EBAN is pleased to present the new edition of the Annual Statistics Compendium, which reports on angel investment data related to 2019. The Compendium provides information on the visible angel market data gathered across 38 European countries. Compared to 2018, the European angel investment market grew by 9.77%, a record year for the industry. Angel investors represented the most important providers of risk capital, accounting for nearly 60% of the total early stage investment market. Fill the form below to subscribe and download the Statistics Compendium and infographic: Email* When you submit the form, check your inbox to confirm your subscription Name* Surname* Organization* Privacy* I´m authorizing EBAN (The European Trade Association for Business Angels, Seed Funds and Early Stage Market Players, located in Brussels, 1040 BE) to save and use my personal data according to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This information is used by EBAN exclusively for sending newsletters and other email campaigns about the latest developments in the global entrepreneurial, innovation, and early-stage ecosystem. Subscribe and Download {{ vc_btn:title=Download+the+Statistics+Compendium+%28PDF%29&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2020%252F12%252FEBAN-Statistics-Compendium-2019.pdf%7Ctitle%3AStatistics%2520Compendium%25202019%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }} {{ vc_btn:title=Download+the+Statistics+Compendium+Infographic+%28PNG%29&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2020%252F12%252Ff493e2c6-a480-476e-86dc-961774f2096f-2.png%7Ctitle%3AStatistics%2520Compendium%25202019%2520Infographic%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

EBAN Data Publishes its 2020 Guidebook on Measuring Angel Market Data – A Tool to Allow Comparison and Benchmarking between Investor Communities EBAN Data is delighted to announce the publication of our 2020 Guidebook on Measuring Angel Market Data, providing the best practices from our network for the collection of data points related to business angel investments. In particular, the Guidebook has the goal of standardizing across the European business angel network ecosystem the way investment data is collected and analysed, so to better allow comparison and benchmarking between investor communities across Europe. The guidebook contains questions and a glossary of terms created as the result of a harmonization process that was performed on the various surveys currently being used by EBAN Data Committee members. The survey is specifically created for individual angel investors, affiliated to a business angel network or to a national business angel association. It was established by the members of the EBAN Data Committee in collaboration with EBAN Members DanBAN, FiBAN, EstBAN, HBAN, and SICTIC. Fill the form below to subscribe and download the report Email* When you submit the form, check your inbox to confirm your subscription Name* Surname* Organization* Privacy* I´m authorizing EBAN (The European Trade Association for Business Angels, Seed Funds and Early Stage Market Players, located in Brussels, 1040 BE) to save and use my personal data according to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This information is used by EBAN exclusively for sending newsletters and other email campaigns about the latest developments in the global entrepreneurial, innovation, and early-stage ecosystem. Subscribe and Download {{ vc_btn:title=Download+the+EBAN+Data+Guidebook+%28PDF%29&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2020%252F12%252FGuidebook-on-Measuring-Angel-Market-Data-EBAN-Data-2.pdf%7Ctitle%3AEBAN%2520Data%2520%25E2%2580%2593%2520Measuring%2520Angel%2520Market%2520Data%253A%25202020%2520Guidebook%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

EBAN Impact Publishes its First Impact Investing Report – Reporting on Investor Background and Investment Characteristics EBAN Impact is delighted to announce the publication of our first Impact Investing Report #EIIS2020. EBAN Impact is the home for all EBAN members interested in impact investing and social entrepreneurship. The Impact Investing Report provides information on the profile and background of impact investors, as well as the characteristics that define their investments. EBAN Impact’s Investing Report is based on a survey launched in April 2020 led by Juan Alvarez de Lara, board member of EBAN, chairman of EBAN Impact, and founder of Seed&Click, and sponsored by Dr. Lisa Hehenberger and Dr. Kai Hockerts, professors at ESADE Business School and Copenhagen Business School respectively. Fill the form below to subscribe and download the report Email* When you submit the form, check your inbox to confirm your subscription Name* Surname* Organization* Privacy* I´m authorizing EBAN (The European Trade Association for Business Angels, Seed Funds and Early Stage Market Players, located in Brussels, 1040 BE) to save and use my personal data according to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This information is used by EBAN exclusively for sending newsletters and other email campaigns about the latest developments in the global entrepreneurial, innovation, and early-stage ecosystem. Subscribe and Download {{ vc_btn:title=Download+the+EBAN+Impact+Investing+Report&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2020%252F12%252FEBANIMPACTINVESTING2020-REPORT-2.pdf%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

Each year, Atomico sets out a macro snapshot of our ecosystem in partnership with Slush and Orrick. Their goal is to chart progress and prompt further interrogation of how we can realize European tech’s potential. 2019 ended on a high, with a record $38.6B of capital invested, close to 180 $1B+ companies and $16B closed by European venture capital funds. Five years of continuous success had created a solid foundation of belief in European tech, both within our ecosystem and globally. Then the Covid-19 storm hit, trailing in its wake fears of deep economic recession and retrenchment by founders and investors.  The data shows that our ecosystem has more than survived, although not without cost. The report goes over Angel Investing specifically, as there has been a growing interest in angel investing in Europe over the past few years.  Atomico reated a set of questions specifically targeted to respondents who identified as angel investors in the survey and received close to 100 responses from all over Europe.

The Angel Capital Association has published the 2020 Angel Funders Report, a deep dive into investment trends reflecting a growing North American angel ecosystem, benefitting communities with innovative new companies and jobs. The report is based on information collected from a variety of ACA member groups, including some of the most active investing communities. The Angel Funders Report analyzes angel capital investments made during 2019, and features profiles, stories, and insights from leading angel investors and startup company executives. The report also includes initial perspectives regarding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the investing ecosystem. Key findings highlighted in the report include: Individual angel groups invest about $2.5M each year in 10-20 new ventures, fueling innovation and job growth throughout North America, spanning multiple industries Angel funded companies raised $2B in total capital from multiple sources, multiplying their initial angel investments about 7 times Seed round valuations of startup companies are holding steady, with a median of $6M Women and people of color remain underrepresented as CEOs of early stage companies

AFME has published a new report tracking the progress to date of the European Commission’s flagship Capital Markets Union (CMU) project through eight Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). The report, which EBAN contributed to, is entitled, ‘Capital Markets Union – Key Performance Indicators (Third Edition)‘, third publication that reviews developments in the CMU project and identifies what further work needs to be done. Fill the form below to subscribe and download the report Email* When you submit the form, check your inbox to confirm your subscription Name* Surname* Organization* Privacy* I´m authorizing EBAN (The European Trade Association for Business Angels, Seed Funds and Early Stage Market Players, located in Brussels, 1040 BE) to save and use my personal data according to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This information is used by EBAN exclusively for sending newsletters and other email campaigns about the latest developments in the global entrepreneurial, innovation, and early-stage ecosystem. Subscribe and Download {{ vc_btn:title=Download+the+Report&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2020%252F11%252FAFME_CMU_KPIs2020_04-1-2.pdf%7C%7C%7C&el_class=subscribe-and-download }}

Depending on where you are in the world, we are eight to 10 months deep into a global pandemic without an end in sight. When lockdowns were rapidly implemented worldwide in March, the prevailing sentiment was that an economic downturn was coming. Naturally, the thinking went, this would impact venture funding and the IPO markets. That has happened, but not as negatively or in the way many expected. Instead, over the past two quarters, we have witnessed an accelerated shift to cloud-based services that has been both dramatic and likely persistent, as many of these new behaviors seem poised to endure post pandemic. And the IPO market is booming. A look at the numbers: Following a strong second quarter in global funding, the third quarter of 2020 has held up with $76.4 billion in venture funding worldwide—up 1 percent quarter over quarter and 9 percent year over year. That resilience in venture investment comes amid a sudden change in how we work, learn, shop, dine, travel, consume entertainment and exercise. Neighborhoods are changing with the closure of restaurants and stores while hotels are being repurposed for frontline pandemic workers. Around the world, 1.2 billion school-aged children are not being educated in a classroom, according to the World Economic Forum. And according to a study from Stanford University, 42 percent of the U.S. workforce is working from home. With a high 33 percent of workers not working at all, and the 26 percent of essential workers who are employed on-premises, the U.S. has become a dominant work-from-home economy. Many tech companies have extended their work-from-home periods to July 2021 and some indefinitely. The seismic shift to remote work and school has prompted a boom in cloud-based services and funding for that technology. “In the last couple years there’s been a trillion dollars of on-premise software that’s transferring to the cloud,” Steve Loughlin from venture firm Accel said in an interview with Crunchbase News. “And that’s just accelerating.” Zoom reported a jump in daily meeting participants from 10 million in December 2019 to 300 million in April 2020, representing a 2,900 percent growth over this four-month time frame. Meanwhile Plaid, which connects users’ bank accounts with apps, experienced a surge in usage constituting a 44 percent increase across its customer base March through May when compared to the same period last year. A survey conducted by Plaid found that 80 percent of Americans say they have no need for a physical bank branch to manage their finances. New stores created on the Shopify platform, which enables small and medium-sized businesses to sell online, grew 71 percent in Q2 2020 compared with Q1 2020. Crunchbase data shows increased investment between Q1 and Q3 2020 versus the same period in 2019 in health care, apps, payments, education and gaming. Quarter over quarter—when excluding sectors that only showed growth due to a dip in Q2—there has been increased funding to the commerce and shopping, manufacturing, sports, gaming, agriculture and farming, and clothing and apparel sectors.

  A total of 21 angel investment deals worth an aggregate EUR 47 million targeting companies based in Western Europe have been announced in September 2020 to date, compared to 31 deals valued at a combined EUR 74 million for the same 20-day period in August, according to Zephyr, the M&A database published by Bureau van Dijk. In all, 47 deals totalling EUR 145 million were recorded for the whole of August, which represents the lowest volume and value since December 2019 (40) and March 2020 (EUR 139 million), respectively. August is traditionally a quieter month as investors put the brakes on dealmaking during the holiday month. In spite of the global coronavirus pandemic resulting in worldwide lockdowns and negatively impacting industries, angels still have the appetite to invest. Zephyr shows angel investment targeting Western Europe in Q2 2020 was the tenth-highest by volume and the sixth-largest by value for a quarter on record. In all, 184 deals totalling EUR 793 million were announced in Q2 2020, up from 177 investments worth EUR 665 million in Q1 2020. In Q3 2020 to date, 137 deals valued at EUR 574 million have been announced, though there is still some time until the end of the month in which more high value deals may be announced. Targets based in the UK accounted for Western Europe’s top four angel investment deals by value in in September to date. Artificial intelligence-based contractual law automation software developer ThoughtRiver attracted the largest investment after completing a series A financing round worth EUR 8 million. Interestingly, 15 of the 21 deals announced in September to date targeted the computer software sector. Targets based in Germany, Switzerland and Italy featured more than once in the month’s 21 deals, while companies based in Sweden, the Netherlands, Denmark, Ireland, and Luxembourg were targeted in one deal eacg. Cocoonut is the only Luxembourg-based company to have been targeted this month: the co-living housing manager secured EUR 110,000 from angel investors that included Vincent Bechet, Jean-Nicolas Montrieux, Jeremy Charoy and Laurent Rouach. The startup designs, rents and manages co-living houses and buildings focused on people settling in a new city. It is one of only two deals targeting a company based in Luxembourg to have been announced in the year so far; the other features online asset management software-as-a-service provider Next Gate Tech securing funding from MiddleGame Ventures and Expon Capital, EEBIC Ventures and angel investors from Yeast SC and Be Angels. In a wider context, 93 angel investments worth EUR 396 million have been announced globally in September 2020 to date, while the value of global angel investment dealmaking in August was driven up to EUR 2,406 million, representing one of the highest on record, due to one deal worth more than EUR 1,000 million. Conversely, volume failed to sustain month-on-month growth and fell back to the lowest level since August 2019 (173 deals). In all, 508 deals totalling EUR 3,979 million have been announced worldwide in Q3 2020 so far. Those deals targeting Western Europe over the latest quarter account for 27 per cent of global volume and 14 per cent of value. ThoughtRiver, having been targeted in the largest angel investment, placed 13th globally, whereas the largest deal announced globally featured Beijing Networkbench completing a series C funding round worth EUR 49 million. The volume and value of angel investment globally and targeting Western Europe will always fluctuate and the first three quarters of 2020 to date are no different, although the impact of the coronavirus is putting its own spin on the figures. Angel investors continue to invest in startups, but the question remains whether Covid-19 will negatively impact their ability to do so during what remains of 2020 and to what extent the pandemic will affect the total capital they have on hand.   © Zephyr

Following it’s 2019 report focusing on The Sustainable Development Goals, Dankse Bank has recently updated The State of Nordic Impact Startup report, this time mapping the 10 most common myths holding back the development of the Nordic Impact Space. By quantitatively analyzing 1018 Nordic impact start-ups, Dankse Bank assesses the validity of these myths as well as outlines what can be done to change these perceptions. This exploration reveals that Nordic countries have a growing number of impact start-ups, maturing to a point where they are beginning to resemble regular growth stage start-ups. This conclusion was evident due to a number of sub-findings. Many of the impact start-ups analyzed seem to have more in common with their conventional counterparts in the same vertical than with other impact start-ups. Additionally, 98% of the impact start-ups integrate impact in their business model to enhance profit. 46% of the founders have significant entrepreneurial experience. The progress amongst Nordic impact is positive, however Dankse Bank acknowledges there is still a way to go if we are to move the needle on the UN’s 2030 agenda for sustainable development. Read on and find more details inside the report. Download the Report

There have been 22 angel investment deals worth an aggregate EUR 39 million targeting companies based in Western Europe announced in August 2020 to date, according to Zephyr, the M&A database published by Bureau van Dijk. The overall result represents a significant month-on-month decline from 64 deals worth a combined EUR 370 million in July. While there are still eleven days to go until the end of the month under review, both volume and value have some way to go to reach the heights recorded in July, which came after two consecutive months of decline in May (EUR 292 million) and June (EUR 143 million) following the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. On a 12-month comparison, August fell 69 per cent by volume and 84 per cent by value, from 70 deals worth an aggregate EUR 237 million in August 2019. There have been 86 angel investment deals worth a combined EUR 409 million targeting Western Europe announced in Q3 2020 to date. Volume is down 52 per cent, while value has so far declined 47 per cent from 178 deals worth an aggregate EUR 779 million in Q2 2020; however, there are still 41 days until the end of Q3 and therefore enough time for a number of sizeable angel investment deals to be announced to improve overall value for the quarter. Of the 22 deals signed off in August so far, only one targeted a company based in Spain. This deal involves web portal management services provider Procera Technologia securing EUR 140,000 in a round of funding from angels such as Francois Derbaix, Fernando Cabello-Astolfi and Alejandro D Caneda, among others. In total, there have been 42 angel investments targeting Spanish companies signed off in 2020 to date, the largest of which is worth EUR 8 million and involves online hotel reservation group ByHours Travel raising cash from Angel Ventures Mexico SA de CV, among other venture capital backers. Other Spanish targets in the year to date include online university training courses provider Proeduca Altus, investments and savings management company Prakma Innovation and web page templates and graphics designer Genially Web. The largest angel investment deal to target a Western European company in August was worth EUR 7 million and involved UK-based online real-time cross-border payment processor Vitesse raising funds from angel investors and other venture capitalists. This was followed by European Super Angels Club, among others, investing EUR 6 million into Austria-based business information interface tool developer 360Kompany. UK-based online membership-based health services provider Med24, Germany’s online mobile carbon footprint calculation application Climate Labs and German medical and pharmaceutical auditing services provider Qualifyze, among others, have also been targeted.  In all, 12 of the top 20 deals by value targeted companies based in the UK, while Germany was featured in six of these and Spain and Austria were targeted in one deal apiece. Globally, there have been 84 deals worth an aggregate EUR 1,795 million involving angel investors announced in August 2020 to date. Volume has declined 60 per cent from 211 deals in July; however, value has increased 63 per cent from EUR 1,104 million month-on-month, despite there still being eleven days until the end of the month. Similarly, year-on-year volume declined while value increased from 246 deals worth EUR 1,363 million in August 2019. There have been 295 angel investments worth an aggregate EUR 2,898 million announced globally in Q3 2020, compared to 622 deals worth EUR 4,325 million in Q2 2020. Angel investment in Western Europe appears to have slowed down in August despite results having returned to pre-coronavirus levels in July. The lack of single deals with higher individual values can be attributed to the disappointing result as no deal exceeded the EUR 10 million-barrier in the four weeks under review. However, globally the result fared much better, with one deal topping EUR 1,000 million as US-based Epic Games raised EUR 1,289 million in a round of funding involving David Tepper, among others. © Zephyr

DEPO Ventures, an EBAN member, is  a unique investment platform that manages a seed investment fund a network of business angels while also providing M&A advisory services. During 2020, they conducted a survey in order to better identify the business angel market in Czech Republic. Some of the most interesting findings of the survey are that 36% of angel investors in the country are between the ages of 35-44 and that 69% of the respondents had previous startup investment experiences, suggesting a very energetic environment. Read the full results:

A detailed report written by Lisa Hehenberger for Stanford Social Innovation Review analyzing what investors and policy makers who want to advance impact investing in Europe need to account for. Impact investing has taken a foothold in Europe most notably during the past decade, but some countries and regions have developed more rapidly and earlier than others despite pro-impact policies that applied to the entire continent. Britain positioned itself at the forefront of the field by establishing the Social Investment Task Force (SITF) in 2000 and following up shortly thereafter with the creation of policies, investment funds, and specialized financial tools. France joined it as a leader by creating solidarity-based funds in 2001. In 2012, Britain later advanced the field significantly with the establishment of Big Society Capital—one of the world’s first wholesale investment institutions focused on combined social and financial returns. Development in Central and Eastern Europe has been slower, with a number of nations still in their infancy in attracting and deploying capital. The variability presents a message that investors and policy makers can’t ignore: If they want to advance impact investing in European regions, they need to account for the field’s different levels of maturity in national, subnational, and municipal markets.

Innovation Center Kosovo‘s latest research “Startup Ecosystem in Kosovo”, on the growing strategic importance of the sector for the country and its major role in economic growth. This study, financed by the European Union Kosovo, aimed to evaluate the needs in the present startup ecosystem. The study also identifies the key challenges startups face, as well their various attempts to overcome obstacles and become sustainable and profitable.

A report by startupticker.ch and investor association SECA shows how investments developed in the first half of the year. Despite the COVID-19 crisis, a total of CHF 763.4 million in venture capital went into young Swiss companies, with a record of 105 financing rounds completed. For detailed results and in-depth analyses, please download the report below.  

There have been 27 angel investment deals worth an aggregate EUR 275 million targeting Western European companies announced in July 2020 to date, according to Zephyr, the M&A database published by Bureau van Dijk. In terms of value, the four weeks under review is already more than double June’s EUR 128 million, with still eleven days to go until the end of the month. The improvement comes against a 36 per cent decline by volume from 42 deals in June. The improvement by value continued when compared to July 2019 when EUR 219 million was invested across 63 deals. The increase comes as the restrictions introduced as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic begin to ease slightly and dealmaking picks up again after months of suppressed activity around the world. However, it is worth noting that 64 per cent of July’s value can be attributed to the month’s largest deal. Angel investment in Western Europe rose by both volume and value to 172 deals worth EUR 765 million in Q2 2020, compared to 167 deals worth EUR 652 million in Q1 2020. On a 12-month comparison, dealmaking declined from 200 deals worth EUR 867 million in Q2 2019. One deal accounted for more than half of total angel investment targeting Western European companies in July and was also one of two top 20 deals to target a Swedish company. Oat-based non-dairy products manufacturer Oatly raised EUR 176 million in a round of funding that involved a number of angel investors, including talk show host Oprah Winfrey, actress Natalie Portman and  Starbucks chief executive Howard Schultz. This deal was worth significantly more than the second-largest angel investment deal in Western Europe as German online mobile network operator zeotap completed a series C round of funding involving Eric Roza, Chris Scoggins and Taylor Barada, as well as private equity investors such as NeueCapital Partners and MathCapital Partners. Companies based in the UK featured in eleven of the top 20 deals by value in July, while Germany was targeted in four of these and Sweden and Spain in two deals each. Interestingly, Switzerland was targeted in a single transaction in the four weeks under review as stroke treatment surgical equipment manufacturer Artirica Medical closed a series A round of funding led by 4FO Ventures, business angels, Verve Capital Partners and Venture Kick. This deal was one of 17 angel investments in Switzerland announced in 2020 to date. In the largest transaction to feature the country in the year so far, online infrastructure management software-as-a-service provider Screening Eagle Technologies raised EUR 52 million. Other Swiss targets have included Frontify, Crypto Finance, Terra Quantum, Teylor and PXL Vision. Artirica Medical’s deal placed 10th out of the 17 angel investment deals announced in Switzerland in 2020. Globally, there have been 103 deals worth an aggregate EUR 583 million involving angel investors announced in July 2020 to date, with still eleven days to go until the end of the month. Value still has some catching up to do to reach the EUR 1,350 million invested in June 2020. In a quarterly comparison, Q2 ended better than Q1 as 604 deals worth EUR 4,470 million were signed off, compared to 573 deals worth EUR 3,774 million. The largest angel investment deal signed off worldwide in July was also the largest in Western Europe and involved Oatly raising EUR 176 million. Ten of the top 20 deals featured North American targets and six involved companies in Western Europe, while Colombia was targeted twice, and India and Singapore featured once each. Angel investment is beginning to slowly pick up as we enter the “new normal” following the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. July is proving to be positive compared to other recent months as activity in Western Europe not only improved month-on-month but also year-on-year, providing hope for the rest of 2020. Three deals in the region topped the EUR 10 million-barrier and as the largest deal was worth over EUR 100 million, hopefully this is a positive sign that large angel investment deals will continue to be announced in the months to come. © Zephyr

AFME published, in July 2020, a new research note on the “Impact of COVID-19 on European Capital Markets: Market Update”. The purpose of this report is to provide an update on how European capital markets have performed during the COVID-19 outbreak. This report follows a first publication launched in mid-April which assessed the initial impact of COVID-19 on Europe’s capital markets. Key findings: Issuance levels of investment grade (IG) bonds have reached record weekly, monthly and quarterly volumes. An ESG recovery. European market liquidity has deteriorated over the last few months. Follow on equity offerings have continued to support the recovery. After two months of a virtually inactive IPO market, the European primary equity market reopened in May with EUR 3.6bn in proceeds from 24 deals. European listed SMEs have also benefited from access to equity capital, predominantly from secondary offerings on Junior exchanges. Record volumes of bank lending.

The annual European Innovation Scoreboard (EIS) provides a comparative assessment of the research and innovation performance of EU Member States and selected third countries, and the relative strengths and weaknesses of their research and innovation systems. It helps countries assess areas in which they need to concentrate their efforts in order to boost their innovation performance. This year’s EIS reveals that the EU’s innovation performance continues to increase at a steady pace. Further overall improvement is expected in the short-term, but progress remains uneven within the EU. The EIS 2020 report is the first edition published since the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union, and all results for the EU are for the current 27 Member States.  

In 2019, SICTIC invested in 51 Swiss tech startups, up from 42 rounds in the year 2018. This contribution represents half of all ICT startups investments made in 2019 in Switzerland – 52 seed and 46 early-stage financing rounds. Because of the high number of investments, the report provides not only insights about SICTIC but also about the Swiss ICT startup scene in general and its evolution over the years.   Since 2014 when the club was established, SICTIC Investors funded more than 90 startups, which have created more than 2300 jobs. This demonstrates the significant positive impact that SICTIC Investors have on the Swiss economy. The SICTIC Investor Community has grown to 331 investor members by end-2019, including five VC funds. Download the Full Report

Women are at the forefront of our fight against the coronavirus pandemic, representing 70% of the health and social sector workforce globally. As our economies are facing an unprecedented recession, a massive and coordinated response is required to avoid leaving the economy badly scarred for longer. Women could play a decisive role in the recovery as well. Considering gender equality and empowering women entrepreneurship could help to accelerate and fortify our recovery, especially given that women-led businesses tend to be more productive, faster-growing and innovative. Empowering women’s participation in the labour market and encouraging entrepreneurship could thus add billions to the economy. According to the European Commission, improvements to gender equality could create 10.5 million jobs by 2050 and boost the EU economy by between €1.95 and €3.15 trillion. In this context, the new report, “Funding women entrepreneurs: How to empower growth”, prepared by the joint EIB and European Commission InnovFin Advisory, provides a sound market overview of the funding landscape for women-driven businesses. It assesses the access-to-risk-capital conditions for these firms and analyses trends in venture capital funding for women-led and women-founded companies in the EU, the United States and Israel. The report is based on data from PitchBook and interviews with market practitioners from the European venture community and other stakeholders. “Our collective crisis response measures offer a unique opportunity for EU Institutions and the EIB Group to empower growth via targeted advisory support and financing for women-led businesses and to put them on a stronger footing for the future,” said Lilyana Pavlova, EIB Vice-President. “Putting our full weight behind female entrepreneurs makes fundamental sense. In addition, bankers and investors increasingly see that it is not only ethically and socially the right thing to do, but also an engine to empower growth in our economies. In recent years the EIB has put its financial weight behind a series of gender-focused projects in Europe and beyond, but we are well aware that much still remains to be done.” Read the Full Report

At the time of writing, there have been 24 deals with an aggregate value of EUR 102 million involving angel investors injecting funds into Western European companies announced in June 2020. However, it is worth noting that there is still a week to go until the end of the month and that volume and value are likely to increase further by then. Last month, there were 59 such deals worth a combined EUR 293 million signed off. The global Covid-19 pandemic which has swept the planet this year had undoubtedly had an adverse effect on dealmaking in 2020 so far. As a result, it is not surprising to note that both Q1 and Q2 are down on the corresponding periods of last year. However, it is worth highlighting that value for Q2 2020 (EUR 734 million) is already up on Q1’s EUR 644 million, while volume (151) is only slightly short of Q1’s 164 deals. Time will tell if enough transactions will be announced in the quarter’s final week to boost this figure higher than Q1. In Q1 and Q2 2019, there were 181 deals at EUR 907 million and 198 deals at EUR 866 million, respectively. The UK was a notable target of angel investment within Western Europe in June, having been targeted in three of the top five deals, including the largest of all. That transaction saw synthetic and stem cell technology developer Bit Bio secure a EUR 37 million Series A funding round from ARCH Venture Partners, Foresite Capital Management, Bob Nelson, Rick Klausner and Jim Tananbaum, among others. The month’s second-largest deal by value featured a German target as online business management software-as-a-Service provider Bryter received EUR 14 million, also via a Series A injection, from Accel Management, Notion Capital Partners, Dawn Capital and Mike Chalfen. There is nothing unusual about German and UK companies featuring heavily in a month’s largest angel investments as these countries have traditionally attracted a lot of interest from angels. However, this month is slightly unusual as three Irish companies received angel investment and featured in the top 25 in the month under review. One of those involved TripAdmit, an operator of a ticketing platform for tour and activity operators, bringing in EUR 300,000 from Thomas Jones. The company said the financing would be used to expand its platform, as well as to provide help to Irish tourism organisations and enable them to rebuild following the disruption caused to their usual business by the coronavirus pandemic, the resulting global lockdown and the associated travel restrictions. TripAdmit operates a digital ticketing platform which can be integrated into tour and activity operators’ websites, enabling them to sell tickets via their own sites. The company also said the proceeds of the funding round have been earmarked to help it expand its sales, marketing and engineering operations to reach more customers. Irish companies have secured fairly significant amounts of angel investment over the years, with 113 such deals having been announced since the start of 2006. The most valuable of these was actually signed off in October of last year, when mobile lending peer-to-peer platform operator Flender Ireland received EUR 75 million from former Irish rugby star Jamie Heaslip, as well as Mark Roden. The next two deals were both announced in April 2020; Profitero received EUR 18 million from Scaleworks Venture Equity Fund and Conviction Investment Partners, while Avectas brought in EUR 18 million from Seamus Mulligan and undisclosed existing investors. Given the exceptional circumstances caused by the pandemic, no-one will be surprised to see activity levels down on the corresponding periods of last year, but there are still sizeable investments being signed off, giving plenty of hope for the rest of 2020. The uncertainty caused by the crisis means we cannot be sure what form the “new normal” will take, but results will give many hope that an upturn in activity will follow as restrictions are gradually eased. © Zephyr

DURHAM, N.H.—The angel investor market in 2019 saw a decrease in active investors and the number of investments overall but an increase in the total dollars invested by angels, according to the latest angel market analysis by the Center for Venture Research at the University of New Hampshire. The change in total dollars combined with the decrease in the number of investments resulted in a deal size for 2019 that was significantly larger than in 2018, up 6.8%. Total angel investments in 2019 were $23.9 billion, an increase of 3.2% over 2018. A total of 63,730 entrepreneurial ventures received angel funding in 2019, a decline of 3.6% over 2018 investments. The number of active investors in 2019 also declined to 323,365 as compared to 334,565 in 2018, a decrease of 3.3%. In addition, angel investments in the seed and start-up stage were 37% in 2019, relatively unchanged from 2018. Angel investments in the early stage were 43% in 2019, similar to 2018 allocations (39%) and total investments in the expansion and late stage in 2019 were 20%, a slight decrease from 2018. “It is encouraging that the seed and start-up deals remained steady at more than one-third of market investments since angels are the leading source of risk capital for nascent entrepreneurs,” said Jeffrey Sohl, director of the UNH Center for Venture Research. The average angel deal size in 2019 was $374,225, an increase of 7% from 2018. The average equity received was 9.4% with a deal valuation of $4 million, a 38% increase from 2018. “These valuation trends are likely an indication of upward pressure on valuations resulting in overvaluations in some sectors and/or regions of the angel market,” said Sohl. The Center for Venture Research has been conducting research on the angel market since 1980. The center’s mission is to provide an understanding of the angel market through quality research. It is dedicated to providing reliable and timely information on the angel market to entrepreneurs, private investors and public policymakers. The University of New Hampshire inspires innovation and transforms lives in our state, nation and world. More than 16,000 students from all 50 states and 71 countries engage with an award-winning faculty in top-ranked programs in business, engineering, law, health and human services, liberal arts and the sciences across more than 200 programs of study. As one of the nation’s highest-performing research universities, UNH partners with NASA, NOAA, NSF and NIH, and receives more than $110 million in competitive external funding every year to further explore and define the frontiers of land, sea and space.

  The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) has published a paper on the Coronavirus economic crisis and its impact on venture capital and high growth enterprises, authored by Professor Colin Mason. High growth enterprises (HGEs) make a major contribution to economic growth. They are innovative, many are technology based and they make a disproportionate contribution to job creation. HGEs typically go through a ‘valley of death’ in which their costs exceed revenues as they develop their product, achieve market traction and scale-up. For many HGEs, access to venture capital – from venture capital funds, business angels and increasingly equity crowdfunding platforms – is therefore critical, providing a financial ‘runway’ that provides them with the opportunity to reach profitability. The economic crisis created by the COVID-19 pandemic is expected to result in both an immediate and longer-term contraction in the supply of venture capital. This will have a significant negative economic impact over the longer-term. Investors will focus on supporting their existing investee companies and therefore are much less likely to consider making new investments. Moreover, the financial capability of investors to make further investments may be constrained as investors in venture capital funds pull back and business angels experience a decline in their net worth as a consequence of the decline in financial markets. This raises concerns, first, that many HGEs will fail as they run out of cash and, second, that potential high growth start-ups that emerge from the crisis will not be able to raise pre-seed and seed capital. The immediate focus of government intervention has been to support the small business sector with measures to support their liquidity. A key focus has been the provision of loan guarantees to enable banks to lend to cash-strapped businesses. However, this type of support is not appropriate for HGEs; moreover, the eligibility rules for such schemes often excludes such firms. HGEs require other forms of financial support. These include co-investment schemes, tax incentives for business angels, convertible debt instruments and grants and other non-dilutive forms of finance. Developing agile government procurement processes is also a significant lever for government support to technology businesses. Many of these support measures already exist but require modification to increase their reach. The effectiveness of some new initiatives has been compromised by poor design. The increase in financially constrained HGEs and investors may result in an increase in acquisition activity. Governments should therefore also consider the need for greater scrutiny of the takeover of emerging technology companies by foreign companies because of the risk that key knowledge assets will be transferred to other geographical regions. More generally, Government needs to ensure that entrepreneurial ecosystems remain intact. Finally, governments must also ensure that the contraction of VC investing does not widen existing geographical disparities in venture capital investing and, as a consequence, high growth firms. Full Report

A total of 29 angel investment deals worth an aggregate EUR 187 million targeting Western European companies have been announced in May 2020 to date, according to Zephyr, the M&A database published by Bureau van Dijk. Even though there are still 11 days left until the end of May, volume and value are significantly down month-on-month, from 66 deals totalling EUR 328 million announced in April. On a positive note, the value of angel investment deals targeting Western Europe in May to date is not one of the lowest recorded for the trailing 12 months as it exceeds the whole of March (EUR 132 million), December 2019 (EUR 170 million), August 2019 (EUR 128 million) and May 2019 (EUR 135 million). Conversely, volume in May to date is one of the lowest recorded for the last 12 months, second only to August 2019, when 24 deals were announced over the four weeks. The value of angel investment in the region remained robust in Q1 2020, in spite of the adverse impact of the coronavirus pandemic on markets and economies globally. A total of 162 deals worth EUR 643 million were announced over the first three months of 2020, while 95 transactions valued at EUR 515 million have been announced in Q2 2020 to date. Dealmaking targeting the region in Q2 2020 to date accounts for a third of the global volume of deals announced so far in the second quarter (287) and more than a quarter of global value (EUR 1,947 million). A EUR 110 million investment in Jung of France is propping up the aggregate value of deals recorded for May to date. The funding round by the French online reconditioned electronic products sale platform operator – trading as Black Market – accounts for 59 per cent of total value recorded in the month to date. Only one other deal exceeded EUR 10 million: Blast, a Copenhagen, Denmark-based esports entertainment events organiser, secured almost EUR 13 million in a funding round led by angel investor Johan Gedda and Vakstfonden. Ten of the top 20 angel investments in Western Europe in May to date targeted a business based in the UK, though companies based in Spain, Finland, Switzerland, Sweden, Germany and Italy also featured. The only Italian deal in the month’s top 20 involved deep tech startup FLEEP Technologies raising EUR 800,000 in a seed funding round that was supported by Pariter Partners, members of Italian Angels for Growth, Club degli Investitori, and the Cogliati family. The Milan-based company was spun out of the Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia in 2019 to advance a proprietary process technology for the manufacturing of flexible integrated micro and nano electronic circuits with the use of organic polymer inks without the use of silicon. These printable integrated circuits are transparent, flexible and recyclable and can serve industries ranging from packaging to consumer electronics. Money raised will support the development of the intelligent, flexible and sustainable electronic systems – with the aim of bringing the technology to the market within three years. While it is difficult to predict how the ongoing COVID-19 crisis will impact dealmaking, it is worth noting that investors have enough dry powder to take advantage of opportunities cropping up across the various sectors as companies seek financial support, be it to stave off administration or to bankroll growth. © Zephyr

DURHAM, N.H.—All signs indicate that 2020 is likely to be a challenging time for angel investing and the negative impact could be similar to the post 2000 decline and the 2008-09 recession, according to new analysis by the Center for Venture Research at the University of New Hampshire. How lasting these impacts are will likely be determined by a myriad of factors, many of which are beyond the control of the angel investor. During the great recession of 2008-09, the angel market experienced a two-year decline in total dollars invested with the steepest, more than 26%, from 2007-08. The biggest impact, however, was the decline in seed and startup stage investing that occurred in 2009 and 2010, according to Jeffrey Sohl, director of the UNH Center for Venture Research, and colleagues Wan-Chien Lien and Jianhong Chen. The angel yield rate is defined as the percentage of investment opportunities that are brought to the attention of investors that result in an investment. In 2019 the yield rate was 30.7%, continuing a steady rise in yield rates from 17.2% in the first half of 2018.  While a high yield rate is encouraging for entrepreneurs, historically yield rates above 25% have not been sustainable over the longer term. “A few key metrics for the angel market in 2019 indicated that the market fundamentals may not be as secure as to withstand shocks to the market, especially one as fast and as pronounced as the COVID-19 crisis,” the researchers said. “Combining angel investing data from the first quarter of 2020, data on previous external shocks to the angel market and key metrics in the 2019 angel market points to the potential for significant impacts for angel investors, and the entrepreneurs they invest in, as 2020 unfolds.” Angel investing has been, and will continue to be, a long-term investing strategy, but will be at a diminished scale and at a different stage as a result of the pandemic. The most pressing issue, from a market perspective, will be decisions on where to allocate the angels’ diminished investment capital. “Since angel investors are high net worth individuals, given the correction in the public equity markets the angels’ net worth will likely have declined and so will the pool of capital they deploy for angel investments,” the researchers said. “Thus, it is expected that total dollars invested in 2020 will decline. However, if past events offer any guide, the total number of investments will hold steady.” “Angels will prioritize and bridge their existing portfolio companies, and if this reallocation of risk capital is substantial it will be at the expense of the seed and start-up stage market” said the researchers.  Angels are the predominant source of seed and start-up capital for our nation’s entrepreneurs.  “Any potential decline of the foundational, and critical, seed and start-up financing provided by angel investors could lead to significant, and lasting, repercussions throughout the risk capital ecosystem” the researchers said. The Center for Venture Research has been conducting research on the angel market since 1980. The center’s mission is to provide an understanding of the angel market through quality research. It is dedicated to providing reliable and timely information on the angel market to entrepreneurs, private investors and public policymakers. The University of New Hampshire inspires innovation and transforms lives in our state, nation and world. More than 16,000 students from all 50 states and 71 countries engage with an award-winning faculty in top-ranked programs in business, engineering, law, health and human services, liberal arts and the sciences across more than 200 programs of study. As one of the nation’s highest-performing research universities, UNH partners with NASA, NOAA, NSF and NIH, and receives more than $110 million in competitive external funding every year to further explore and define the frontiers of land, sea and space.

This guide gives an overview of the public funding and financial opportunities that are available in Europe for space-related business. We are indeed at a turning point in terms of public finance in Europe and it is not easy to navigate through the numerous available options, especially for startups and small companies. {{ vc_btn:title=Download+the+report&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2020%252F05%252FSpace-Funding-Gateway.pdf%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }} Watch Alexandre Mencik’s webinar organised by EBAN Space in conjunction with SpaceUp (space-academy.eu)     If the link on the picture does not work, please follow this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRhe23tP88w

During these unprecedented times in light of the COVID-19 outbreak, European capital markets have continued to intermediate market liquidity and facilitate risk management for corporates and investors. The purpose of this report is to provide a snapshot of the initial impact of COVID-19 on European capital markets activity. Capital markets resilience As this report shows, European capital markets have continued to operate well and serve their function during times of stress. While working remotely, issuance of investment grade corporate bonds surpassed 50bn EUR in the first week of April; this was also the highest weekly amount ever issued in Europe. French companies have been particularly active. Non-financial corporates have also rapidly increased secondary equity offerings in an effort to raise cash buffers and withstand business closure for several weeks. Markets are more volatile than a few months ago, which has made it costly for some companies to list through IPOs. IPO issuance on European exchanges has declined 83%YtD compared to a year ago. Encouragingly, markets have continued to play their role in providing liquidity, price formation, timely clearing and settlement procedures, capital allocation and helping investors manage their portfolios. Equity trading rose 94% YoY in March-20, corporate bond trading increased 31% YoY in Q1 2020, and FX spot trading rose 61% YoY in March-20. Settled transactions at the ECB’s T2S platform have increased to over 1 million on average per day since 24 February from a 600,000 daily on average in 2019. The rapid increase in securities trading and post-trade activity has been carried out without any major disruption from a business continuity perspective. Securitisation secondary markets have, however, suffered disproportionate reductions in liquidity due to central bank support which is more limited in scope and slower and more difficult to access than for other fixed income sectors. COVID-19 is stress-testing the entire financial system and its institutional architecture The unexpected economic consequences of the COVID-19 outbreak are testing the coordination and speed of response of European and national institutions: monetary policy coordination, fiscal response, financial supervision, as well as global prudential and markets regulatory coordination. The COVID-19 shock is also a real time test of the resilience of the banking sector to absorb simultaneously, a wide variety of shocks: credit risk, market volatility risk, and operational business continuity, while still supporting the real economy. As section 7 of this report shows, banks interacting in the European market are well-positioned from a solvency and liquidity perspective to support households and businesses during this period of abnormal economic pressure, although with ongoing profitability concerns for some market participants which pre-date the current COVID economic environment. AFME’s approach to COVID-19 COVID-19 has had significant implications for our members globally with many having to reallocate resources to focus on managing business continuity issues. AFME remains engaged with policy makers across Europe, ensuring we are communicating on the wide set of policy and operational issues our members are facing in the current environment. As summarized in section 8, AFME is working together with our members and regulators to ensure that markets remain open, well-functioning and liquid in light of the market impact of COVID-19. AFME will continue to assess the implications of COVID-19 for our members and to engage with authorities across Europe. Full Report

The value of angel investment deals targeting Western Europe improved despite a decline by volume to 27 deals worth a combined EUR 123 million in April 2020 to date, according to Zephyr, the M&A database published by Bureau van Dijk. Volume was down 43 per cent from 47 deals month-on-month, while value improved 73 per cent from EUR 71 million in March. On a 12-month comparison, April’s value – with still nine days to go until the end of the month – is so far keeping to the same trend as the first three months of 2020 and has currently declined 63 per cent from EUR 333 million in April 2019. Volume in the four weeks under review was the lowest-recorded result of the last 12 months, while value only remained higher than March. The outbreak of the coronavirus has already had a significant impact on global dealmaking in 2020, therefore it is unsurprising that angel investment in Western Europe is also down year-on-year. Many Western European countries have been under lockdown restrictions to avoid the spread of Covid-19 in recent months. Screening Eagle Technologies, a Switzerland-based online infrastructure manager raised EUR 52 million in a series A round of funding led by EDB Investments and including business angels and the family office, in the largest angel investment deal to target Western Europe in April 2020. This was followed by another Swiss target as asset management brokerage Crypto Finance – in a series B financing round – received an investment of EUR 13 million from Rainer-Marc Frey, Lingfeng Capital Management, QBN Capital and other investors. One other deal exceeded the EUR 10 million-barrier in April and contributed to the month-on-month improvement by value as Yapily, a UK-based open banking enterprise connectivity software provider, raised EUR 12 million from a number of individuals such as Taavet Hinrikus, Ott Kaukver and Roberto Nicastro, which teamed up with Lakestar Advisors and HV Holtzbrinck Ventures Advisor, among others. Ten of the top 20 angel investment deals by value targeting Western Europe featured UK- and Germany-based businesses, three involved Switzerland-headquartered companies, while Sweden, Italy, France and Spain were also targeted. Interestingly, one deal, which placed seventh overall, involved a Finnish group as noise cancelling earbuds manufacturer QuietOn received EUR 5 million in a seed funding round from Business Finland and angel investors. Jussi Lemilainen, chief executive of QuietOn, said the company is now well-positioned to raise a series A round, given its millions of dollars in revenue and profitability. This deal is one of 226 angel investments to target a Finland-based company announced since the start of 2006. The largest of these to date took place in June 2019 when online restaurant food ordering and delivery provider Wolt Enterprises raised EUR 116 million in a series C round of funding from Ilkka Paaananen, 83North Management and EQT Ventures, among others. Aiven, AlphaSense and ICEYE were also targeted in the top five of these deals. Angel investment activity globally is likely to decrease in April given there have been 88 deals worth an aggregate EUR 436 million announced to date, with still nine days to go until the end of the four-week period. March ended positively with 157 deals worth EUR 1,161 million, which followed the 171 deals valued at EUR 1,152 million in February. Currently, due to the uncertainty around Covid-19 and how the ongoing spread will continue to affect global dealmaking, it is hard to predict how future months of angel investment in Western Europe will be impacted. However, April’s value having already improved on March could be a positive sign for things to come. © Zephyr  

  In 2019, startups and growth companies raised a new record amount, totaling 511 million euro. Business angels invested 54 million, a new all-time high, and Finnish venture capital (VC) funds invested 113 million euros. Foreign investors invested 295 million euro into Finland. The most significant increase in investments came from foreign VC funds, which invested 180 million into Finnish companies, while the share of other foreign investments dropped to 115 million euro. ​ A Peak Year for Both Angel and Venture Capital Investments The sum of angel investments rose to record levels in 2019, when business angels in Finland invested 54 million euros into a total of 415 startups. This is what FiBAN’s annual investment survey of its members – one of the most comprehensive statistics on angel investment in Europe – finds. FiBAN, which operates in Finland, is one of the world’s largest business angel networks. The record figures are partly explained by a few exceptionally large individual investments. Often, angels also fund their portfolio companies through follow-up rounds, the number of which was significant in 2019. “We have a community of more than 650 private investors with diverse investor profiles. There is a lot of variation in the investment volumes of individuals who invest their personal wealth,” says Amel Gaily, Managing Director of FiBAN. Full Article

March looks likely to decline on February’s result in terms of the volume and value of announced angel investment deals targeting companies based in Western Europe, according to Zephyr, the M&A database published by Bureau van Dijk. At the time of writing, there have been 24 such deals worth a combined EUR 43 million announced in the month so far. However, it is worth noting that there are currently still 11 days to go until the end of March, meaning the figure could increase somewhat over the coming weeks. In terms of volume, March’s result represents a 56 per cent decline on the 55 deals signed off in February, while value slipped 85 per cent from EUR 279 million over the same timeframe. Last month’s result was up on January’s 44 deals worth EUR 212 million. It is worth noting that March 2019 was also a quiet month, relative to January and February of last year, with volume and value declining to 47 and EUR 189 million, respectively. The situation is likely to have been exacerbated this year by the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus, which has been severely impacting on financial markets and dealmaking activity worldwide in recent weeks. The most valuable European angel investment to have been announced worldwide during March is worth almost EUR 11 million and took the form of a Series A injection in UK mobile smart wallet application provider Argent Labs. The round was led by Paradigm, a fund managed by Sequoia Capital Operations, and also included participation from angel Robert Leshner and Index Ventures, Creandum Advisor and Firstminute Capital. The month’s second-largest deal was valued at EUR 5 million and targeted a Swedish manufacturer of electric boats. This is fairly notable as boat builders are not typically the most popular targets for angel investors, which tend to be more drawn towards the software industry. In fact, Zephyr shows that only seven deals involving angels investing in boat builders have been announced worldwide since the start of 2006. This month’s transaction involved Lidingo-headquartered Xshore receiving a EUR 5 million investment from Peter Dahlberg. As a result of the deal, Dahlberg becomes the firm’s second investor, after founder Konrad Bergström. Proceeds of the transaction have been earmarked for continuing the development of Xshore’s high-speed 5.80 and 8.00 metre boats while simultaneously hiring new staff and improving its new facilities in Stockholm, with the ultimate goal of expanding to the UK and throughout Europe. Bergström has cited the increasing trend towards sustainability as an encouraging factor for the company. Other boatbuilders to have been targeted by angel investors since the start of 2006 include China-based Zhuhai Yunzhou Intelligent Technology, Spanish player Bound 4 Blue and France-headquartered Iguana Yachts, although the Xshore deal is the largest angel investment in the sector on record. As such, as we move into an increasingly uncertain period, it is difficult to predict how badly dealmaking activity will be affected, and for how long. However, we are almost sure to see declines for the foreseeable future given the ongoing spread of Covid-19 and the associated slowdown in activity this will cause. What the longer-term economic implications will be remains unclear, but March could prove to be the beginning of a period of decline. © Zephyr  

The EIF has recently published an update of the performances of the European Angels fund using its proprietary database, to shed light on a specific subset of the European business angel (BA) sector, i.e. the 106 BA’s who have entered an agreement with EIF. The EAF is an initiative of the European Investment Fund (EIF), which was launched in 2012 as a pilot project. {{ vc_btn:title=Read+full+Report&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.eif.org%252Fnews_centre%252Fpublications%252Feif_working_paper_2020_62.pdf%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

Both the volume and value of angel investment targeting Western European companies announced in February declined to 12 deals worth EUR 86 million, according to Zephyr, the M&A database published by Bureau van Dijk. It is worth noting there are still eight days until the end of the month and as such, enough deals could be signed off between now and then to see February improve on both fronts, following an impressive result in January. The first month of the year is traditionally a slower month for M&A dealmaking when compared to December; however, this does not appear to be the case for angel investment as January reached 40 deals worth EUR 206 million, compared to 33 deals valued at EUR 167 million in December 2019. This pattern has been seen a number of times over recent years: deals worth EUR 197 million were recorded in December 2018, compared to EUR 318 million in January 2019, (December 2017: EUR 142 million; January 2018: EUR 253 million) and (December 2016: EUR 86 million; January 2017: EUR 137 million), among others. Of the 12 angel investment deals targeting Western Europe announced in the month under review, nine had a known value and targeted a range of different countries, including Finland, Germany, the UK, Italy, Sweden and Belgium. The largest of these involved Finnish cloud-based open-source database and messaging systems provider Aiven raising EUR 36 million from Olivier Pomel, Earlybird VC Management and Lifeline Ventures Fund Management, among others. This was followed by a EUR 20 million funding round by German cannabis products distributor the Sanity Group, which involved angel investors and other backers like HV Holtzbrinck Ventures Advisor and Atlantic Food Labs. Other companies targeted in February include UK-based bicycle insurance service provider Laka, Italian business travel management firm BizAway and Swedish online video tool Codemill. Interestingly, one of the 12 deals signed off in the month to date targeted a Turkish company as online shopping platform Andme Yazilim San Tic secured an undisclosed amount of series C funding from Milena Djuicic. This deal particularly stood out as it is one of only 38 angel investment? deals to target a Turkish business announced between 2006 and 2020 so far. The largest of these transactions was worth EUR 34 million and took the form of a series A funding round by online urban logistics and mobile technology platform Getir Perakende Lojistik led by Michael Moritz, Revo Capital Management and the Crankstart Foundation. Globally, there have been 56 angel investment deals worth EUR 486 million announced in February, with eight days still to go until the end of the month. January has started promisingly as 163 deals worth EUR 1,193 million were signed off, compared to 157 deals worth EUR 927 million in December. The largest of these deals was worth EUR 102 million and involved Indian online free education platform operator Sorting Hat Technologies raising cash from Sujeet Kumar, Kalyan Krishnamurthy and General Atlantic, among other investors. Of these deals, the largest to involve a Western European target placed third. In conclusion, angel investment in Western Europe during January was up when compared to December. If this is any indication on how February will end, the opening two months of 2020 could have a positive impact on Q1 2020 results. However, it is still too early to establish how things are likely to shape up across the remainder of the year. © Zephyr  

The volume and value of angel investment targeting Western European companies in January 2020 to date was decidedly slower than dealmaking recorded for the comparable three-week period in January 2019, according to Zephyr, the M&A database published by Bureau van Dijk. In all, 16 angel investments worth an aggregate EUR 49 million were announced during the month under review, down from 34 such deals valued at EUR 123 million in the same timeframe in 2019. Angel investment in the region also failed to surpass the 24 transactions totalling EUR 154 million recorded over the same period in the traditionally quieter holiday month of December. It is worth mentioning that angel investment targeting Western European companies declined for the second consecutive full month at the end of 2019 – resulting in a total of 26 deals worth EUR 158 million in December (November: 45 deals; EUR 380 million). However, in spite of this decline, the aggregate value of dealmaking in Q4 2019 was the highest on record at EUR 1,082 million, mostly due to EUR 545 million-worth of angel investment deals being announced in October 2019. This, in turn, contributed to making 2019 a banner year, as value rose for the third successive period to EUR 3,292 million (2018: EUR 2,891 million; 2017: EUR 1,976 million). A lack of individual, high-value investments in Western Europe announced in January 2020 suppressed aggregate value as no single deal was worth more than EUR 20 million. The largest was valued at EUR 11 million and featured Anyline, an Austrian mobile text recognition application provider, completing a series A round of funding led by Project A Ventures and which also included Senovo Capital Management, Dr Johann Hansmann and Gernot Langes-Swarovski Foundation. This deal was also the 11th largest announced globally in January to date, although it was significantly behind first-placed Califia Farms of the US, which raised USD 225 million in a Series D financing led by Qatar Investment Authority, with participation of Temasek Capital, Claridge, Green Monday Ventures, an undisclosed Latin America based family, Ambrosia Investments, Sun Pacific, Stripes Group, Leonardo DiCaprio, Karlie Kloss, Shaun White, Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelley. One Western European deal announced in January stood out in particular: Belgian startup Kazidomi secured EUR 1 million in a deal described as seed development capital funding round and which featured participation by Pranarom, Dominique Baudoux, Francois Blondel, Olivier Coune, Benoit Coenraets and Eric Everard. Kazidomi is an ecommerce platform that allows consumers to buy healthy, organic, vegan and gluten or lactose-free products online at reduced prices. The startup has also begun to develop its own product range that includes sauces, purees and cosmetics, among other things. The investment is interesting considering how healthy eating and veganism are fast-growing trends as consumers are thinking more about the environment and responsible consumption, not to mention the investment comes during a month traditionally considered as a chance for people to stop drinking and pursue clean eating after the extravagances of December. In conclusion, it remains to be seen if the slow start to angel investment in Western Europe in January 2020 will pick up pace to outperform January 2019 and whether any acceleration will lead to sustainable growth to outshine the banner year of 2019. © Zephyr  

The traditionally quieter holiday period has resulted in a decline in both volume and value of angel investment deals targeting Western European companies for the second consecutive month in December 2019, according to Zephyr, the M&A database published by Bureau van Dijk. In all, there were 22 such transactions worth a combined EUR 118 million announced during the month under review, compared to the EUR 347 million injected across 35 deals in November, while October 2019 saw 52 angel injections with an aggregate value of EUR 545 million signed off. Although we are used to seeing something of a decline in the last month of the year, the result is also down on December 2018’s 44 deals worth EUR 197 million. The lack of a very high value deal has suppressed value considerably in December as no transaction even broke the EUR 20 million-barrier. The largest of all was worth EUR 18.03 million and took the form of a seed funding round as French 3D camera and smart monitoring technology manufacturer Outsight secured investment from Demeter Partners, Societe Anonyme De Participations et de Gestion SPDG, BNP Paribas, Faurecia Ventures, Safran Corporate Ventures and Mr Eric Carreel. This was closely followed by a EUR 17.53 million Series A injection in UK-based insurance brokerage Cuvva by ru-Net, Breega Capital and Digital Horizon, as well as angels Dominic Burke and Faisal Galaria, among others. Companies in a wide variety of sectors were targeted by angels during the month under review, with oncology treatments manufacturing, revenue-based finance service provision and cybersecurity companies among those to benefit from their interest in December to date. In addition to these and the usual software injections, there was one deal in a slightly different segment which piqued the interest this month and it featured a UK target. The transaction in question was again a round of seed funding. Gene modification research and development company Pencil Biosciences secured EUR 590,000 from Midven, through the UK Innovation & Science Seed Fund, Catapult Venture Managers, via the GM&C Life Sciences Fund, and angel investor Jonathan Milner. Proceeds of the injection have been earmarked for helping the firm reach its goal of developing innovative gene modulation technology which could provide new therapeutic options for patients with rare diseases, among other potential applications. Executive chair Jon Moore said the investment will fund the Alderley Park-headquartered company into early 2021. Companies providing research and development services in the physical, engineering and life sciences sector have been targeted fairly frequently by angel investors in the last few years. Zephyr shows 667 such transactions have been announced worldwide since the beginning of 2009. The most valuable of these closed in August 2018, when US tissue-led small molecule regeneration therapeutics player Samumed secured EUR 562.24 million from unspecified angels, sovereign wealth funds and family offices. This was followed by a deal from earlier this year; in July, US ultra-high bandwidth brain-machine interfaces developer Neuralink brought in EUR 140.30 million from tech entrepreneur Elon Musk, among others. Other companies in the physical, engineering and life sciences research and development field to have been targeted by angels in the last 11 years include Recursion Pharmaceuticals, CureVac and Joby Aviation. In conclusion, although it is disappointing to note that December’s results represent a decline on last month, it is worth noting that this is often the case in the final month of a year as dealmakers begin their holidays over the Christmas period. Nevertheless, the presence of some sizable injections and a wide range of sectors being targeted will be encouraging for those watching the markets. © Zephyr

The pioneering study conducted by The Research Institute of the Finnish Economy (Etla) has taken a giant leap to open up the mystery about the real effects of angel investments, as well as synergies between private and public funding in Finland. Etla’s new study  Business Angel Investment, Public Innovation Funding and Firm Growth (ETLA Report 97) combines an extensive literature review of business angel investments with an econometric analysis of the impact of angel investments. According to the study, in Finland, business angels invest annually in a few hundred mainly startup firms that operate typically in knowledge-intensive industries. The data include FiBAN members’ investments in firms both abroad and in Finland and cover the years from 2013 to 2018. The results show that 80% of firms funded by business angels in 2013–2017 operate in the service sector. As many as 41% of target firms provide information and communication technology. {{ vc_btn:title=Download+the+Report&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.fiban.org%252Fuploads%252F7%252F8%252F5%252F7%252F78578870%252Fetla-raportit-reports-97.pdf%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

EBAN is pleased to publish the pilot results of its new research project conducted in collaboration with Hockeystick, a data analytics platform that also powers angel market reports for the Angel Capital Association and NACO Canada. Download the infographic report below to view deal statistics from EBAN members that participated in the pilot! Look at angel check sizes, sector preferences, and other statistics showing how angels from participating networks – HBAN in Ireland, FiBAN in Finland, EstBAN in Estonia and SICTIC in Switzerland – invest. All EBAN member angel networks, early stage funds and equity accelerators are invited to participate in the next edition of this insightful report – get in touch with info@eban.org to find out more! {{ vc_btn:title=Download+EBAN-Hockeystick+Pilot+Report&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2019%252F12%252FHockeystick-EBAN-Pilot-Report-2018.pdf%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

EBAN Publishes its Annual Statistics Compendium – Reporting on the Activity of Business Angels and Business Angel Networks in Europe EBAN, the European Business Angels Network, is delighted to announce the publication of our Annual Statistics Compendium – Europe’s most extensive annual research on the activity of business angels and business angel networks. The Statistics Compendium provides information on the overall early stage market and on how business angel networks operate, as well as insight into their investment attitudes. EBAN’s Statistics Compendium is based not only on the information provided by European business angel networks (hereafter BANs), Federations of BANs, individual business angels and other validated early stage investors who responded to EBAN’s Survey, but also based on data published in 122 other sources which include: Dealroom.co, Zephyr database (Bureau van Dijk), Crunchbase, Startup Watch, European Commission National Venture Capital Associations, governmental BA co-investment funds and fiscal incentive reports, and national and regional research studies on angel investment. Compared to 2018, the European angel investment market grew by 9.77%, a record year for the industry. Angel investors represented the most important providers of risk capital, accounting for nearly 60% of the total early stage investment market. Fill the form below to subscribe and download the report Email* When you submit the form, check your inbox to confirm your subscription Name* Surname* Organization* Privacy* I´m authorizing EBAN (The European Trade Association for Business Angels, Seed Funds and Early Stage Market Players, located in Brussels, 1040 BE) to save and use my personal data according to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This information is used by EBAN exclusively for sending newsletters and other email campaigns about the latest developments in the global entrepreneurial, innovation, and early-stage ecosystem. Subscribe and Download {{ vc_btn:title=Download+Statistics+Infographic&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttp%253A%252F%252Feban.img.musvc1.net%252Fstatic%252F90357%252Fdocumenti%252FConsoleDocuments%252FStatistics%2525202018%252520Infographic.pdf%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }} {{ vc_btn:title=Download+EBAN%27s+Statistics+Compendium+2019&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2020%252F12%252FEBAN-Statistics-Compendium-2019.pdf%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

The value of angel investment deals targeting companies based in Western Europe reached the highest-recorded result for any month in the entire year to date in October, representing the second consecutive increase month-on-month, according to Zephyr, the M&A database published by Bureau van Dijk. In total, there have been 47 deals worth an aggregate EUR 432 million announced in October, representing a decline by a single deal by volume, while value more than doubled from 48 deals worth EUR 167 million in September. Similarly, on a 12-month comparison, volume was down 10 per cent while value improved 62 per cent from 52 deals valued at a combined EUR 266 million in October 2018. However, as we move into the holiday months, November has slowed down significantly compared to October’s 12-month high, with just nine deals worth EUR 27 million having been signed off so far. It is worth noting there are still ten days until the end of November and therefore there is time for the four-week period to rebound, as we have seen many times before. On a positive note, each of the nine deals recorded during the month to date all had a known value. The largest of these topped EUR 10 million and involves UK-based residential real estate manager IMMO Investment Technologies UK raising EUR 11 million in a series A round of funding, involving angel investor Mato Peric, as well as fund managers Talis Capital, DST Global Advisors and HV Holtzbrinck Ventures Adviser, among others. UK-based targets featured in six of the nine deals signed off in November, while Spain featured in two of these and France was targeted in one transaction. Of the UK-based companies, one in particular stood out as drug discovery simulation platform Turbine Simulated Cell Technologies raised seed funding worth EUR 3 million from Vishal Gulati and Ester Dyson, as well as o2h, Delin Ventures and Atlantic Internet. This deal was third-largest among 14 others to target a Western European custom computer programming service provider announced in 2019 to date. The top deal involves French image recognition and analysis developer Deppomatic raising EUR 6 million from Bertrand Diard, among others. Globally, the largest UK-based target by angel investors in November placed 14th behind businesses in the US and Asia Pacific, including Chinese smart car manufacturer Guangzhou Xiaopeng Motors Technology, which raised EUR 363 million from He Xiaopeng, Xiaomi and other investors. There were a total 181 angel investments worth EUR 1,265 million announced globally in October, compared to 153 deals worth EUR 967 million in September. November is slightly behind, with ten days still to go until the end of the month, as 93 deals worth EUR 791 million have been signed off. To sum up, October exceeded all expectations and was the largest month for angel investment in Western Europe since the start of 2019. There are still ten days to go in November for high-valued investments to be announced to keep up the growth recorded in October; however, the fact that all deals in the month to date have a known value is something positive to take into the start of the holiday season. © Zephyr

The Co-Investment Compendium is intended to assist business angels, entrepreneurs and other readers interested in the early stage investment market and learning about different forms of collaboration between business angels and public authorities. The publication covers 29 different countries and includes 107 case studies on different co-investment funds. It also features chapters on the importance of co-investment funds to support angel investing, as well as on best practices and FAQs for setting up co-investment funds. EBAN expresses its gratitude to all contributors who provided data and information for the publications. Fill the form below to subscribe and download the Statistics Compendium and infographic: Email* When you submit the form, check your inbox to confirm your subscription Name* Surname* Organization* Privacy* I´m authorizing EBAN (The European Trade Association for Business Angels, Seed Funds and Early Stage Market Players, located in Brussels, 1040 BE) to save and use my personal data according to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This information is used by EBAN exclusively for sending newsletters and other email campaigns about the latest developments in the global entrepreneurial, innovation, and early-stage ecosystem. Subscribe and Download {{ vc_btn:title=Download+2018+Coinvestment+Compendium&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2019%252F11%252FCoinvestment-Compendium.pdf%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

Fiscal incentives have an important role in stimulating the activity of business angels and early stage equity investors in start-ups. They encourage private investors to diversify their portfolio towards unquoted (primarily equity) investments in high-growth, innovative companies. This can significantly increase the pool of private individuals ready to make an equity investment in a start-up. This year, EBAN partnered again with BOFIDI to develop the  Compendium of Fiscal Incentives, which covers 34 countries. We would like to thank BOFIDI and its network of 19 partner organisations for working with EBAN to address the lack of knowledge about the fiscal situation in different European countries, one of the main barriers holding investors back from co-investing internationally. {{ vc_btn:title=Download+EBAN%27s+2018+Fiscal+Compendium&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2019%252F11%252FFiscal-compendium.pdf%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

The volume and value of angel investment deals targeting companies based in Western Europe rebounded in September following the traditionally quieter holiday month of August, according to Zephyr, the M&A database published by Bureau van Dijk. In all, 43 deals totaling EUR 156 million were announced over the four weeks, compared to 21 deals worth an aggregate EUR 126 million in August. However, the volume and value of angel investment deals announced in October to date has failed to sustain gains made in September as 17 deals totaling EUR 112 million have been announced so far, through there is still time for this figure to increase before the end of the month. Overall value in October to date would be significantly lower if not for one EUR 55 million funding round by Tier Mobility of Germany. This was the only investment valued at more than EUR 50 million in October to date and it accounts for almost half of the EUR 112 million-worth of deals announced so far this month. It is also only one of two deals targeting a company based in Germany. As usual, the UK attracted the majority of angel investment in October to date, with seven deals, compared to two deals apiece for France, Germany and Italy. Interestingly, targets based in Spain, Belgium, Ireland and Denmark each featured in one deal. Acqustic Platform of Spain stands out in particular as it claims to be one of the largest online communities of emerging musicians in Spain. More than 3,000 musicians in Barcelona, ​​Madrid, Valencia, Malaga, Seville and Bilbao are registered on the website and, through the online platform, can be hired for concerts at home, corporate events and festivals, among other things. Acqustic raised EUR 650,000 in a funding round led by Toushka SAPI de CV, Lanai Partners, Business Booster, IESE Business School, ESADE Business Angels Network and EAE Invierte. It is the 13th largest angel investment targeting a Spanish company in 2019 to date, the biggest of which features Citibox SMART Services raising EUR 11 million in June. Within a global context, Spanish targets did not feature in the top 25 deals announced globally in October to date, though Western Europe’s largest angel investment of the month so far was third, after Relativity Space and SparkCognition; these two US-based companies have raised EUR 128 million and EUR 91 million, respectively. In all, 73 angel investment deals totaling EUR 522 million have been announced globally in October to date, compared to 142 deals worth an aggregate EUR 871 million for the whole of September (August: 129 deals; EUR 768 million). In conclusion, angel investment targeting companies based in Western Europe ramped up following the traditionally quieter holiday month of August, but October needs some high-value financing rounds announced within the next ten days in order to sustain the growth recorded. © Zephyr

AFME has published a new report tracking the progress to date of the European Commission’s flagship Capital Markets Union (CMU) project through eight Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). The report, which EBAN contributed to, is entitled, ‘Capital Markets Union – Key Performance Indicators (Second Edition)‘, second publication that reviews developments in the CMU project and identifies what further work needs to be done. {{ vc_btn:title=Download+the+Report&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.afme.eu%252FPortals%252F0%252FDispatchFeaturedImages%252FAFME%252520CMU%252520Key%252520Performance%252520Indicators%252520Report.pdf%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

White Paper from the Luxembourg Space Agency focusses on opportunities for collaboration between terrestrial and space mining sectors On 9 October 2019, the second Mining Space Summit gathered more than 180 experts, from 24 countries, working in fields as diverse as oil & gas, terrestrial mining, space, finance, and government. Held in Luxembourg, the goal of the Summit was to understand the technical and economic challenges facing the space resources industry and make recommendations for the future growth of this high technology sector. The White Paper provides a compact summary of current thinking on a sector which will be central to our future expansion into the solar system. Full Report

The volume and value of angel investment deals targeting companies based in Western Europe slowed in the traditionally quieter holiday month of August, according to Zephyr, the M&A database published by Bureau van Dijk. In all, 17 deals totaling EUR 112 million were announced over the four weeks, compared to 55 deals worth an aggregate EUR 184 million in July, as investors put the brakes on dealmaking. Interestingly, the volume of angel investment deals announced in September to date has already surpassed the whole of August, and while value is down month-on-month – and is currently the lowest recorded since August 2016 (EUR 34 million) – there is still time in September for this figure to increase, especially if several more EUR 10 million-plus investments are announced before the end of the month. There have already been three such deals signed off in September to date, with Genenta Science representing the largest angel investment as the Italian gene therapy developer completed a series C funding round worth EUR 13 million that featured participation by Qianzhan Investment Management, Fidim, the Bormioli and Fumagalli families and existing investors, such as Il Club Degli Investitori. While companies in Italy were targeted in three different deals, the UK was by far and away the main targets of angel investment in September to date. Germany, Denmark and Ireland each featured once in the top deals of the month, with Dublin-based CroiValve standing out in particular. The spin-out from the Trinity Centre for Bioengineering, which has developed a minimally invasive treatment for tricuspid regurgitation, raised an additional EUR 2 million in funding from HBAN MedTech Syndicate, Broadview Ventures, Irrus Investments, University Bridge Fund and SOSV. This followed on from an oversubscribed financing round in March 2019 that, according to the statement at the time, had the largest ever number of HBAN members to contribute to one funding round. Within a global context, Western Europe’s largest angel investment in September to date was only sixth by value. China attracted the highest deal by value as Suzhou Xiancheng Technology secured EUR 91 million via a series B round of funding led by Lenovo’s Legend Capital Management. In all, 62 angel investment deals totaling EUR 332 million have been announced globally in September to date, which is significantly lower than the 124 deals worth EUR 734 million signed off for the whole of August (July: 182 deals; EUR 985 million). With regards to quarterly figures, 368 deals valued at EUR 2,052 million have been in announced in Q3 2019 to date, compared to 478 deals totaling EUR 3,783 million in Q2 2019. In conclusion, with the traditionally quieter holiday month of August behind them, angel investment targeting companies based in Western Europe should ramp up once again and, hopefully, may continue to diversify away from the traditional destinations of the UK, France and Germany to include more high-value financing rounds in other countries. © Zephyr

The volume of angel investment deals targeting companies based in Western Europe was unchanged month-on-month, despite value declining to 49 deals worth EUR 170 million in July 2019 from 49 deals worth EUR 363 million in June 2019, according to Zephyr, the M&A database published by Bureau van Dijk. Volume and value in July 2019 declined 24 per cent and 60 per cent, respectively, from 63 deals worth an aggregate EUR 422 million announced in July 2018. However, value was not completely stripped away and remained higher than May 2019 and August 2018 over the last 12 months under review. While there are still ten days to go until the end of August at the time of writing, both the volume and value of angel investment deals in the month to date are significantly lower, with 5 deals worth EUR 15 million signed off so far. The last time value was under EUR 20 million was December 2012 (EUR 18 million) and of the five deals announced in August 2019 to date, four had known values and three targeted companies based in the UK. This included the largest angel investment as Flatfair, a tenancy management platform, raised EUR 10 million from Greg Marsh, Taavet Hinrikus and Jeremy Helbsy, as well as venture capitalists Index Ventures, Revolt Ventures and Advinta. This deal accounts for 67 per cent of total value in August 2019. Taylor & Hart, a UK-based customer-designed diamond jewellery manufacturer, raised just under EUR 4 million in the second-largest deal from Paddy Byng, LauncHub Ventures and Active Private Equity Advisory. One other company based in the UK featured in the five deals with angel activity in Western Europe in August, this involved fitness centre operator Your Zone receiving an undisclosed amount of second-round funding from Mhairi FitzPatrick, Jeremy Taylor and Andy Kay. The only two other deals announced in the month so far featured fourth-placed Reclamadatos, a Spanish online personal data protection platform, closing its first round of financing worth EUR 100,000 from Alberto Burgueno, Hector Pequerul, business angels, TPartner and Reus Venture Capital SCR-Pyme. The third-largest deal particularly stood out as companies based in Belgium have only been targeted by angel investors in nine separate occasions in 2019 to date. This involved data management software-as-a-service provider Esoptra raising just over EUR 1 million from founders, existing private investors and new private investors. Of the nine deals to target Belgium in 2019 so far, this deal placed fourth behind Endo Tools Therapeutics raising EUR 5 million, Tools4Patients raising EUR 4 million and Osimis raising EUR 2 million. Globally, angel investors announced 174 deals worth an aggregate EUR 956 million in July 2019, representing a 23 per cent increase by volume and 31 per cent decline by value from 141 deals worth EUR 1,392 million in June 2019. On a 12-month comparison, volume fell 10 per cent, against an 8 per cent decrease by value from 193 deals worth EUR 1,035 million in July 2018. In August so far, 52 angel investment deals worth EUR 325 million have been signed off globally, with six of these exceeding EUR 10 million by value. WebFlow, a US-based no-code web development software-as-a-service provider, raised EUR 64 million from FundersClub, among others, in the largest of these. In conclusion, while angel investment in Western Europe during Q2 2019 was impressive, Q3 2019 still needs to catch up as 54 deals worth EUR 185 million have been announced so far with just five more weeks until the end of the quarter. The UK continues to be a main target point for angels; however, a small number of high-valued deals and investor interest in other countries could potentially be a turning point for both August and Q3 2019. © Zephyr

The Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN) published the ninth edition of its Annual Impact Investor Survey. Comprising data and insights from 266 of the world’s leading impact investors, the report provides in-depth analysis of market activity and trends, covering topics such as: industry challenges; impact measurement and management; financial and impact performance; indicators of market growth; and capital allocations by sector, geography, and instrument. Additionally, this year’s report provides new data on key market topics, including human resources; diversity, equity, and inclusion; and the role of government and policy.   Download the Report

Danske Bank has published The State of Nordic Impact Startup a report on The Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs) that are set by the United Nations and adopted by 193 nations – including the Nordic countries. The SDGs represent a wide range of market needs, from energy solutions to food production and medical services. Danske Bank has identified 647 Impact Startups from The Hub and +impact, two online community platforms. Danske Bank’s findings indicate that Impact Start-ups are following similar patterns as other start-ups. They focus on top-line growth but struggle to make a profit. Financial performance seems to improve as Impact Startups mature in age. In addition, we see that the Energy market represent 63% of the profit pool. 21% are exploring business opportunities in developing markets. In average only 14% of Nordic Impact Start-ups are led by women. 82% of Impact Start-ups seem to be aware of their impact as indicated by their use of impact statements on their website. Read on and find more details inside the report. Download the Report

There were 38 angel investment deals worth an aggregate EUR 180 million targeting Western European companies announced in March 2019, according to Zephyr, the M&A database published by Bureau van Dijk, compared with 60 such deals totalling EUR 366 million in February. Despite the decline month-on-month, value on a 12-month comparison improved 14 percent from EUR 142 million in March 2018; however, volume remained the lowest-recorded result since August 2018 (35 deals). There are still seven days until the end of April, at the time of writing, but so far there have been 15 deals worth an aggregate EUR 27 million signed off this month. Value is trailing significantly behind the previous months of 2019 to date; however, a few single deals with higher values could be all that is needed to boost value for April. The largest deal announced in April so far was worth EUR 9 million and involved OpenGamma, a UK-based cloud derivatives risk analytics management software developer, raising funding from Accel Management Company, Dawn Capital, CME Ventures and Cristobal Conde. In total, 12 of the 15 deals signed off in the month so far had a disclosed value. Of these, seven featured companies based in the UK, including each of the top four, while Spain and Italy both featured twice. The Netherlands, Belgium, and Sweden were each targeted in one deal in April. One deal that stood out in the month under review was the fifth-largest to be announced in the year to date, or the highest-placed Western European target country by angel investors after the UK. This deal involved Portugal-based online pet food subscription platform operator Barkyn securing seed funding worth EUR 2 million from business angel fund Shilling Capital Partners, as well as venture capitalists All Iron Ventures, Indico Capital Partners – Sociedade De Capital De Risco and website development group Capital De Risco. This deal particularly stood out as there have only been a total 18 angel investment deals targeting companies based in Portugal announced since the start of 2006, with Barkyn accounting for the third-largest overall. Unbabel Unipessoal, an online translation platform operator, featured in the largest angel investment in a Portuguese target since 2006 as FoundersClub, as well as other venture capitalists Caixa Capital – Sociedade de Capital de Risco and Salesforce Ventures, to name a few, invested EUR 19 million in Unbabel’s series B round of funding. The volume of angel investment globally declined month-on-month, while value also declined but remained particularly static when compared to February as 133 deals worth EUR 1,067 million were signed off in March compared to 149 deals worth EUR 1,279 million. In fact, value was the fourth-largest for the entire 12 months under review and was slightly higher than the EUR 1,049 million signed off in March 2018. In conclusion, despite the value of angel investment in Western Europe being down month-on-month in March, the first quarter of 2019 is the highest-recorded first quarter on record as EUR 765 million was invested across 152 deals. If the opening three months is any indication of how the remaining three quarters will turn out, then 2019 could prove to be a record-breaking year for angel activity in Western Europe. © Zephyr

There were 45 angel investment deals worth an aggregate EUR 333 million targeting Western European companies announced in February 2019, according to Zephyr, the M&A database published by Bureau van Dijk, compared with 48 such deals totaling EUR 201 million in January, which indicated value growth was driven by individual investments rather than prolific deal making, though volume did remain relatively level month-on-month (January: 48). Interestingly, value in February was the fourth-highest recorded for the period 2006 to 2019 to date due to one deal that fetched EUR 106 million. While there is still another week to go until the end of March, as at the time of writing, only 8 angel investments worth an aggregate EUR 13 million have been announced in the month to date and the largest by value did not even exceed EUR 10 million: UK neuroscience, bioscience, and neurophysiology based medical devices developer and maker Neurovalens secured EUR 5 million in a series A funding round led by Wharton Asset Management UK and Techstart Ventures and which featured participation by IQ Capital Partners, Beltrae Partners, Co-Fund NI and the Angel CoFund. Not only was the Neurovalens one of only four investments targeting Western European companies announced in March to date that had a disclosed value, but it also featured investment in a sector other than usual software/technology targets. Amun of Switzerland was the next target by value and while it is a software/technology target, it is a fintech aiming to facilitate access to crypto-asset investments. The Zurich-headquartered company has recently launched an exchange-traded product (ETP) that tracks a basket of the top virtual currencies but is currently known for its Amun Crypto Basket ETP that started trading on the Six Swiss Exchange in November 2018. Amun landed EUR 4 million in funding from several investors in March, including Adam Draper, the founder of accelerator Boost VC, Graham Tuckwell, the founder of ETFS Capital, and Greg Kidd, co-founder of Hard Yaka, as well as four family offices. Amun intends to use money raised to keep investing in technical infrastructure, to launch additional crypto-tracking exchange-traded products on more strategies across multiple geographies, and to help others bring crypto assets to the public markets. The category encompassing cryptocurrency/blockchain/bitcoin/application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) microprocessors and related activity is a relatively new and up-and-coming segment. However, global companies operating in this area have certainly attracted significant angel investment in recent years; Zephyr shows 51 such deals worth an aggregate EUR 315 million were announced in 2018 (2017: 16; EUR 126 million) and 7 deals with a known combined value of EUR 228 million have been announced in 2019 to date, of which Amun’s fundraiser is the only one in March so far. With regard to mergers and acquisitions within this ecosystem, dealmaking has been rather limited so far but is expected to accelerate as players with war chests start seeking growth inorganically and well-funded startups being expanding their own presence, which could let early-stage investors exit and reinvest in newer players. Change seems to be a-coming: Amazon’s Amazon Web Services is now providing a simple way to build blockchain networks; Google recently announced a raft of crypto and blockchain analytics tools; a New York Times report at the beginning of the month indicated Facebook is about to jump on the bandwagon by launching its own cryptocurrency in the first half of 2019; and it is believed blockchain technology will be a disruptor in the payments sector in the future. © Zephyr

January 2019 was a relatively quiet month in terms of the volume and value of announced angel investment deals targeting Western European companies as 35 such deals worth a combined EUR 170 million were signed off during the month. This result represents a 17 per cent decline in volume on December 2018’s 42 deals, while value slipped 12 per cent from EUR 193 million over the same timeframe. At the time of writing, there is still around a week to go until the end of February and so far, there have been 11 announced Western European angel investments worth an aggregate EUR 131 million. A number of sizeable deals have ensured value is quite respectable in spite of the month’s low volume. February’s largest deal to date is worth EUR 68 million and took the form of a Series C funding round by UK-headquartered online digital banking services provider Starling Bank, led by Merian Global Investors (UK) and with participation from Harald McPike, who previously provided the company with seed investment and has contributed GBP 10 million to the latest injection. Interestingly, this is McPike’s second investment in the company this month; he also contributed EUR 17 million in a separate transaction. The EUR 68 million deal alone accounts for 40 per cent of total Western European angel investment value in February to date and is followed by a EUR 30 million Series C round by French mobile application developer Lunchr. That round came from Index Ventures, Idinvest Partners, Daphni and Kima Ventures. As usual, software/technology companies were frequently targeted by angels in February. In fact, there was only one exception, which saw a hardware manufacturer pique the interest of investors, in an unusual turn of events. That transaction featured a Swiss target as UrbanAlps secured a EUR 2 million Series A round of funding from Swiss professional footballer Stephan Lichtsteiner and seven other unidentified investors from Switzerland, Germany, Finland and Norway. The company is headquartered in Zurich and manufactures StealthKey, which it describes as the world’s first 3D printed metal key. The product is designed to make unauthorised duplication of security keys extremely difficult by hiding mechanical codes internally to prevent anyone scanning or photographing the code. It is also fortified with anti-drill segments and has a modular design, meaning it can easily be extended based on a central connecting bar. Proceeds of the funding round will be used to enable the company, which employs ten people, to begin mass production of its products. In addition to its headquarters, the firm has offices in Prague and Dubai. Hardware manufacturers are rarely the subject of interest from angel investors; in fact, Zephyr shows that only 12 such deals have been announced on record, with the UrbanAlps injection being the sixth-largest of these. The most valuable was worth EUR 60 million and occurred in August of last year, when US latch-access mobile application provider Latchable completed a Series B funding round led by Brookfield Capital Partners and including participation from angel investor Tishman Speyer, among others. That transaction was considerably larger than the second-placed deal – a EUR 6 million series A round by smart lock manufacturer August Home, which closed in November 2013 and was led by Maveron, with participation from multiple private equity firms, as well as angels Matt Mullenweg, Mark Pincus, David Dolby and Scott Belsky. In all, 2019 is off to a quiet start, but the fact that a number of sizeable investments were announced in February proves there is an appetite for dealmaking and gives hope that activity levels will increase as we move through the year. © Zephyr

The space industry is in the midst of a radical transformation. When SpaceX started launching its rockets a decade ago–making it far easier for commercial space startups to enter the market–it triggered a wave of entrepreneurial innovation. Today, Space is a $400B market that touches every aspect of our lives, from location-based services to global finance. The next generation of space technology will be responsible for delivering global internet, fighting climate change, and taking humanity to Mars. To accomplish such audacious goals, the industry will require talent with diverse skills and backgrounds from every walk of life. We spoke with the most influential companies and leaders across entrepreneurial space, who were generous in sharing detailed practical advice, big-picture guidance, and the stories of their own careers. We’ve created this guide to give you concrete steps to start your journey towards a career in space now.

PitchBook provides comprehensive data on the private and public markets—including companies, investors, funds, investments, exits and people—to help global M&A professionals map the market, find target companies, execute deals and more. The 2018 Annual European Venture Report unpacks a year that saw median deal size continue to climb against waning deal count, a lack of €1 billion+ exits despite the year’s keenness for liquidity, and expanding offerings for fund sourcing. In 2018, European VC saw: €20.5 billion of total deal value across 3,384 deals (a 4.2% YoY increase and a 25.9% YoY decrease, respectively) €47.5 billion of total exit value across 373 exits (a 164.8% YoY increase and a 30.5% YoY decrease, respectively) €8.4 billion of total capital raised across 62 funds (a 0.2% YoY increase and a 23.5% YoY decrease, respectively)  

Pymwymic has published a new report how they impact investors, contribute to or constrain the success of their investee companies. In the report entitled ‘What it really takes to be a value-add investor’, Pymwymic interview 20 experienced impact investors, who invest in a range of private companies in their early, growth and mature stages.Their reflections circle around nine themes: Build a relationship with management Know you value-add… and the limits thereof Guide the company to the next level of maturity Remain committed to high business standards Be prepared to deal with sudden drawback Make a conscious decision about control Act on your responsibility as a board member Be aware of which hat you are wearing Know when it is time to go This report has been written in association with Triodos Investment Management and supported by Blue Haven Initiative and Omidyar Network. Download

There have been 11 angel investments worth an aggregate EUR 43 million targeting companies based in Western Europe announced in January 2019, according to Zephyr, the M&A database published by Bureau van Dijk. While value in the opening weeks of 2019 represents the lowest recorded result since August 2016 (EUR 34 million) there are still seven more days to go until the end of the month, suggesting there is time for a small number of sizeable angel investments to be made which could help boost value for the month under review. However, it does look unlikely that both volume and value will reach the 83 deals worth an aggregate EUR 251 million recorded in January 2017. While value in January 2019 is disappointing when compared to December and January of 2017, the figure represents 8 per cent of angel investment globally as 50 deals worth an EUR 573 million have been announced worldwide over the last three weeks. Angel investment activity targeting Western Europe is off to a slow start following a record-breaking year in 2018, as each month recorded value of more than EUR 100 million, totalling EUR 2,758 million for the entire 12-month period (2017: EUR 1,942 million). However, December did represent a decline of 49 per cent on November as EUR 193 million-worth of deals were announced, compared to EUR 381 million a month earlier. That being said, Q4 2018 ended higher than Q3 with 146 deals worth EUR 762 million, up by value from 152 deals worth EUR 697 million quarter-on-quarter. On a global scale, the value of angel investment improved when compared to December, despite there still being seven days until the end of the month, as 50 deals worth a combined EUR 573 million were recorded in January 2019, compared to 98 deals worth EUR 569 million in December. The increase in value against the decline in volume suggests angels favoured single deals with higher individual valuations over prolific dealmaking in the year-to-date. Like angel investment in Western Europe, despite there being seven days to go until the end of January, global investment in 2019 looks unlikely to exceed January 2018, when 214 deals worth EUR 1,336 million were announced. The largest of these deals signed off in January 2019 was worth EUR 159 million and involved Bakkt Holdings, a US-based cryptocurrency and digital assets provider, receiving cash from the Boston Consulting Group, Horizons Ventures, Galaxy Digital Entertainment and angel investor Angel Howard. The second-largest deal globally involves Sachin Bansal injecting EUR 87 million into Indian online mobile taxi booking platform ANI Technologies. The highest-placed Western European was eighth globally as SCA Investments, a UK-based online food boxes delivery service, received EUR 20 million from “Lean In 15” cookbook writer and lifestyle and fitness coach Joe Wicks, as well as Hargreave Hale, MMC Ventures and Angel CoFund, among others. For Western European targets of angel investors in January 2019, this deal represented the largest by far and away as the second-biggest deal was worth just over a quarter of this amount, at EUR 6 million, as angel investors, Felix Capital Partners, Cassius Capital and Cherry Ventures Management injected capital into UK-based Menwell. One deal stood out in the month under review as it was the only one to target a Belgium-based group. This deal involved five individual angels making a EUR 1 million investment in online live or distance learning software-as-a-service provider Wooclap. This deal is one of 98 announced angel investments to target Belgian companies since the start of 2006. The largest of these was worth EUR 65 million and took the form of a series B funding round by iTeos Therapeutics, involving business angels, MPM Capital and Curative Ventures, among others. In conclusion, January 2019 has started slowly, compared to a record-breaking year in 2018; however, is too early to see what this means for the remaining 11 months of 2019. Only time will tell if investment levels will increase in 2019; as angel investment has improved over the last two consecutive years, 2019 could ultimately surpass 2018. © Zephyr

The Austrian Angel Investors Association has released its Angel Investing Report 2018, the most comprehensive analysis of the Austrian angel investing industry ever. It provides answers to the big questions of this dynamic industry and our growing community. The report will eventually help all of us in the further development of the startup ecosystem as a whole. No matter if you’re an active angel investor or thinking about starting your career as one, if you’re a startup looking for funding and not sure what to expect from a potential business angel or if you’re simply interested in the dynamics in the Austrian angel investing market: this is your must-read. Download

Europe boasts a strong space sector. This is largely the legacy of successful space programmes, particularly those on satellite navigation and Earth observation, mostly built on public support. However, the space sector is undergoing unprecedented transformation and development on a global scale. Major technology advancements, a new entrepreneurial spirit and a renewed policy focus have put the space sector under the spotlight on the global innovation stage. Such rapid and constant transformation calls for new approaches to funding and supporting space ventures. The global space economy grew by 6.7 % on average per year between 2005 and 2017, almost twice the 3.5 % average yearly growth of the global economy. One particular contribution to this growth has been the “NewSpace” phenomenon: a series of technological and business model innovations that have led to a significant reduction in costs and resulted in the provision of new products and services that have broadened the existing customer base.

Among the usual raft of software companies, angel investors also targeted a vegan pizza manufacturer in December 2018. In all, there were 24 deals worth a combined EUR 161 million involving angels investing in companies based in Western Europe announced during December 2018, according to Zephyr, the M&A database published by Bureau van Dijk. At the time of writing, there are still 11 days to go until the end of the month, meaning there is still a chance of investment levels increasing by the time January comes around. However, at present, December’s volume represents the lowest for any month in 2018. Value is also fairly low in comparison to the rest of the year, but is higher than in August (EUR 97 million), March (EUR 142 million) and February (EUR 104 million). December’s value is largely supported by a small number of large deals, with the month’s most valuable worth just under EUR 75 million as Swiss IT analytics software developer Nexthink secured a round of funding led by Index Ventures and also including participation from TOP Fund Advisors and Olivier Pomel, among others. This deal alone accounted for 47 per cent of total value in the month under review and was followed by a EUR 40 million injection in German mobile fitness training application provider Freeletics in a round which included participation from angel investor and noted self-help guru Tony Robbins, alongside FitLab, Causeway Media Partners and Jazz Venture Partners. Only one other deal broke the EUR 10 million-barrier in the month under review as UK-headquartered online peer-to-peer property-secured lending platform operator Blend Loan Network raised EUR 11 million from investors including Maurice Levy, Jean-Philippe Blochet and Cyrus Ardalan. It should be noted that all of these deals involve software companies, which, as usual, has been a common target for angel investors in December. However, there are exceptions to this, and one involved a UK target as vegan and gluten-free pizza maker White Rabbit Pizza secured EUR 840,000 from former Burton’s Biscuit Company chief executive Ben Clarke and Propercorn founder Ryan Kohn, among other undisclosed angels. The firm said proceeds of the round have been earmarked for new product development, recruitment and marketing, adding that the injection marks the first phase of a fundraising, with the second to follow in the spring of next year. White Rabbit Pizza was founded by Mateo Ferrari and Nick Croft-Simon in 2015 and produces a range of gluten-free and vegan pizzas. Its products are stocked at UK supermarkets Waitrose and Sainsbury’s, as well as in individual locations such as Oxford’s Rusty Bicycle and Buongiornoe Buonasera restaurants. Perishable prepared food manufacturing companies are not frequent targets for angel investors, which tend to gravitate towards the software industry. This is borne out by the fact that Zephyr shows that only four deals involving angels targeting such companies, including the aforementioned White Rabbit transaction, have been announced worldwide since the beginning of 2006. The most valuable of these four also took place this year as UK-headquartered online fresh plant-based meal subscription platform operator Allplants secured a EUR 8 million Series A round of funding led by Octopus Ventures. Other investors include Felix Capital Partners, Otiva and angels David Milner, Simon Nixon and Jack Harries. This was followed by a 2016 transaction in which German salad and sandwich maker GreenGurus brought in EUR 2 million from Christophe Maire, via his Atlantic Food Labs vehicle, as well as Project A Ventures and Andreas Berger. The only other deal involving angel investors targeting a perishable food manufacturing company featured a US target as Real Food Blends secured EUR 400,000 from Amanda Lannert, Matt Spiegel, Rick Poulton, Harry Gottlieb, Jeff Cantalupo, Lon Chow and Michael Katz. To sum up, December has been a quiet month, although it is worth noting that there are still 11 days to go until the end of the year, as well as the fact that value for each of 2018’s four quarters has surpassed the figures recorded for the corresponding timeframes in 2017. This is a positive sign as we move into 2019 and should give those watching the markets cause to hope that activity levels will continue to rise next year. © Zephyr

Technology’s transformative effect has touched every corner of today’s world. Its commercial, social and political impact has been unprecedented. Now entering its 12th year, GP Bullhound’s Technology Predictions report demonstrates what technology and its leading minds could achieve over the next 12 months. From Smart Retail and Last Mile Delivery to Blockchain and Artificial intelligence, the report analyzes the now, near and next of the global technology sector, mapping the trends and innovations destined to drive growth for months and years to come. Download

This latest edition of EBAN’s Compendium of Co-investment Funds with Business Angels is intended to assist business angels, entrepreneurs and other readers interested in the early stage investment market and learning, first of all, about different forms of collaboration between business angels and public authorities. It provides information on one of the most important incentives to stimulate and organise angel activity: angel investment funds and co-investment funds. In addition, it also aims to aid in discovering different forms of collaboration between business angels and other private players in the early-stage market. The compendium integrates a list of co-investment funds, angel funds, and some other relevant co-investment activities identified in Europe associated with detailed elaborations in the form of case studies about some of the abovementioned, including information as well on the expected market impact and challenges faced by these funds. EBAN is proud to announce that, this year, we have enriched our publication with two new chapters on the importance of co-investment funds to support angel investing as well as on best practices and FAQs for setting up co-investment funds. {{ vc_btn:title=Download+the+Co-Investment+Compendium&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2018%252F12%252FCompendium-of-European-Co-Investment-Funds-with-Business-Angels.pdf%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

EU Startup Monitor has published its 2018 Report. The report studies the EU startup market and analyses the characteristics and challenges startups face in today’s market. The goal of the EU Startup Monitor is the collection and analysis of inputs; being able to act based on this monitoring of the startup environment, and the discovering country-specific and common challenges of the startup and scaleup landscape. Download  

Innovation is key to sustained corporate success. Innovative firms grow twice as fast, both in employment and sales, as firms that fail to innovate. However, European companies spend less on innovation than their competitors. Despite a gradual upwards trend in innovation performance, further efforts are needed to ensure Europe’s global competitiveness. One noticeable trend over recent years has been an increasing move towards open innovation and, in particular, collaboration with startups. This is especially observable in high-tech industries where the rate of innovation is rapid and where knowledge is distributed across multiple organisations, making it more difficult to innovate alone. Done well, this provides a route to scale for young companies, and an important means by which larger firms can innovate. Mind the Bridge and Nesta have published new research titled “The Status of Open Innovation in Europe”. This report includes data from the top 36 companies that have been recognised as active in open innovation in Europe. Download

Research from Mind the Bridge shows that 67% of the European scaleups are located around one or maximum two cities per country. That means that the innovation economy in Europe is heavily concentrated in about 50 main hubs, while all the other cities and municipalities – that have been the backbone of the European economy traditionally – face the risk to be increasingly marginalized. This growing gap could potentially trigger disaggregation and separatisms. The following report is the first effort from Mind the Bridge to measure the impact of the “innovation economy” at a granular scale, in particular, focusing on the role that cities have in the concentration of innovation hubs. Most importantly, their focus lies in the analysis of the potential of development for future hubs of innovation in Europe. How to unleash such potential becomes critical for the future economic development of cities, regions, and countries. In addition to analyzing the current “tech innovation hubs” of Europe, we go deeper in nding leverages that the current “tier-two” startup cities can use to step up their game and unleash their real potential.

In an unusual turn of events, a jewellery retailer based in the UK was targeted by angel investors in November, according to Zephyr, the M&A database published by Bureau van Dijk. This is one of just 13 deals that involves angel investment in the global jewellery making industry announced since the start of 2006 and is also among 19 deals worth an aggregate EUR 87 million involving angel investment in Western Europe in November. Both volume and value represent a decline month-on-month and year-on-year; however, there are still nine days left of the month under review at the time of writing, meaning that if a small number of high-valued deals are signed off, or potentially a large number of deals at lower-valuations, then either volume or value, or possibly both, could increase, thereby resulting in a more impressive result. October ended higher than expected, with 44 deals worth EUR 185 million, representing an increase by value from EUR 175 million invested across 55 deals in September and EUR 182 million across 52 deals in October 2017. However, when comparing November to the same timeframe last year, the month under review still has some way to go if it is to reach the EUR 343 million notched up across 55 deals in November 2017. While Q3 ended positively, increasing year-on-year by value to 149 deals worth EUR 680 million, from 167 deals worth EUR 544 million in Q3 2017, Q4 is lagging behind compared to the previous quarters of 2018. So far, 63 deals worth an aggregate EUR 272 million have been announced in Q4; however, there is still more than a month left until the end of the quarter and angel investors will have to step up their game if the quarter is to exceed the EUR 662 million recorded in Q4 2017. The largest angel investment in a Western European target in November was worth EUR 21 million and involved Dutch online cloud-based screen design and interactive prototyping software manufacturer Framer, which received cash from AngelList, Atomico Partners and Accel Management Company. This was followed by Eric Archambeau and Bart Swanson, together with Talis Capital and Gaw Capital Advisors, investing EUR 18 million in UK-based automated self-service 24-hour music studio operator Pirate Studios. Belgium financial services group iBanFirst, UK online music festival booking platform Festicket, predictive financial forecasting software Fluidly and French advertising agency Eeple, among others, were also targeted by angel investors in November. One of the stand-out deals of the month under review took the form a seed round of funding worth EUR 1 million and involved Camila Dolan, Akshata Murty and other angel investors, working with businesses such as London Co-Investment Fund and Mustard Seed Impact to inject capital into UK-based jewellery retailer Fenton & Co. Angel investment in the jewellery industry is a rarity, with Zephyr showing only 13 such deals have been signed off globally since the start of 2006. The largest of these was worth EUR 5 million and involved Switzerland-based luxury watch retailer Chronext raising capital from backers such as undisclosed business angels, Partech International InVenture Partners. Other targets have included US-based Ice.com and RocksBox, Germany-headquartered Montredo and France-based EDB. In conclusion, October ended higher than expected and with nine days still to go until the end of November, both volume and value have time to turn things around. Despite the disappointing showing so far, there were still some sizable investments made in the four weeks under review. As we move further into the fourth quarter and closer to the year-end there is hope Q4 will end as positively as Q3 and Q2 and help make 2018 one of the largest years on record for angel investment in Western Europe. © Zephyr

EBAN is pleased to present the latest edition of its annual Activity Report, detailing our activities and initiatives over the period of June 2017 – June 2018. The report includes updates on EBAN membership, research publications, EBAN Communities, EU projects, and partnerships, and more. Download the EBAN Activity Report June 2017 – June 2018 to learn more. {{ vc_btn:title=Download+the+EBAN+Activity+Report&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2018%252F11%252FEBAN-Activity-Report-June-2017-June-2018.pdf%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

This year’s Go Beyond Investor Report takes a deep look into Go Beyond Investing (GBI) member community, all the investments they have made and the returns that have been delivered. For the 4th year in a row, investments made via GBI have returned liquidity to its community. These returns have been achieved through the use of diversified portfolios and sales of invested companies to industry acquirers. The report is based on actual data and therefore provides a fully auditable set of conclusions, making it a unique report within the industry. Download

Download the report on angel investing in Africa entitled “State of Play: Finding Product/Market Fit” – A first ever scoping study on angel investing in Africa by ABAN, the African Business Angel Network, and infoDev at The World Bank. Download

The space industries, since their inception in the late 1940s, have been discrete, relatively niche sectors whereby political and military considerations superseded scientific and market rationales. This status quo is changing rapidly in recent years with increased commercialization of the sector and thus, poses the problem of access to finance, especially for small and medium space enterprises. To date there has not been a comprehensive study with statistically significant data of the economic and financial developments and requirements of the European space industries. There is an expressed need for industrywide investment research and publications on the subject. Without comprehensive and reliable aggregate economics, business cycle and financial metrics, commercial banks and private equity funds would continue to offer sub-optimal financial products. Ultimately, this results in forgone opportunities for European economies and society in general. Hence, this paper attempts to examine in a systematic way the access to finance challenges faced by European small and medium enterprises active in the space sector, particularly when expanding their business activities. The conducted research identified market inefficiencies and suboptimal financing conditions for European space SMEs. Significant improvement in the investors’ confidence in the sector along with moderate pace of public investments, mainly in the form of financial instruments, are both simultaneously needed to reduce the perceived market risk.

AFME has published a new report tracking the progress to date of the European Commission’s flagship Capital Markets Union (CMU) project through seven Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). The report, which EBAN contributed to, is entitled, ‘Capital Markets Union Key Performance Indicators: Measuring progress and planning for success‘, and is the first publication in what will be an annual series which will regularly review developments in the CMU project and identify what further work needs to be done. {{ vc_btn:title=Download+the+Capital+Markets+Union+Report&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.afme.eu%252Fportals%252F0%252Fglobalassets%252Fdownloads%252Fpublications%252Fafme-cmu-kpi-report-4.pdf%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

EBAN, the European Trade Association for Business Angels, Seed Funds and Early Stage Market Players, is delighted to announce the EBAN 2017 Annual Statistics Compendium – Europe’s most extensive annual research on the activity of business angels and business angel networks. The Statistics Compendium provides information on the overall early stage market, on how business angel networks operate and insights into their investment attitudes and demography. In 2017, the early stage investment market in Europe totaled 11,4 billion euros, out of which 7,3 billion euros was invested by business angels, an increase of 9% from 2016! EBAN’s Statistics Compendium is based not only on the information provided by European business angel networks, Federations of BANs, individual business angels and other validated early stage investors who responded to EBAN’s Survey, but also based on data published in national and regional research studies on angel investment and EU Commission publications, Dealroom.co, Crunchbase, Zephyr (Bureau va Dijk) databases, governmental BA co-investment funds and fiscal incentive reports. {{ vc_btn:title=Download+EBAN%27s+2017+Statistics+Compendium&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2018%252F07%252FEBAN-Statistics-Compendium-2017.pdf%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }} {{ vc_btn:title=Download+the+Statistics+Infographic&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2018%252F07%252FFinal-Infographic-2017.png%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

EBAN, the European Trade Association for Business Angels, Seed Funds and Early Stage Market Players is proud to present the new edition of its much anticipated annual mapping of fiscal incentives available to business angels in Europe. This year, EBAN partnered again with BOFIDI to develop the annual publication. Fiscal incentives have an important role in stimulating the activity of business angels and early stage equity investors in start-ups. They encourage private investors to diversify their portfolio towards unquoted (primarily equity) investments in high-growth, innovative companies. This can significantly increase the pool of private individuals ready to make an equity investment in a start-up. EBAN expresses its gratitude to all contributors who provided data and information to the current research, in particular, we would like to thank BOFIDI and its network of partners. {{ vc_btn:title=Download+the+Fiscal+Incentives+Compendium&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2018%252F07%252FEBAN-Compendium-of-Fiscal-Incentives-2017.pdf%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

East-West Digital News has released a comprehensive research about startup investment and innovation across Central and Eastern Europe. The report contains a series of interviews with investors, entrepreneurs and experts, and fascinating insights about innovation ecosystems in 24 countries of the region. EBAN and CrunchBase have contributed fresh data about local business angel and VC activity. Download your free copy through this link: http://cee.ewdn.com

EBAN would like to disseminate an excellent toolkit that was created by VTT in the framework of the AAL2Business Support Action. This toolkit is an excellent publication on business model development. Although it focuses concretely on the Active and Assisted Living sector, entrepreneurs from other sectors might find it handy too! It tackle the design (“How to design business models and value propositions”), the testing (“How to validate business models in AAL projects”) and the learning (“How to analyse what is learnt in AAL projects”). Copyright: Report titled “Business Model Development Toolkit for AAL Projects“, July 2017 Author(s): Arto Wallin and Pasi Pussinen, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland LTD Responsible Administrator: AAL Association  Brussels Download

As more and more investors and communities recognize the benefits of establishing angel groups, it’s important to have resources that ensure that they don’t have to recreate the wheel. The Kauffman Foundation and several ACA members have developed tools that will help groups in formation get a quicker and more effective start. The page includes many practical tools for determining the best structure for your group and beginning operations. It should be noted that there is not one “right” structure or methodology for assessing community readiness for an angel network. The Guidebook “Angel Investment Groups, Networks, And Funds: A Guidebook to Developing the Right Angel Organization for Your Community” recommends that communities conduct an assessment of their community and its characteristics for angel group development as a first step. It also includes a number of helpful templates, checklists, worksheets and more. Other helpful features related to ACA are Marianne Hudson’s column in Forbes (Executive Director of ACA) and Christopher Mirabile’s column in Inc. (Chairman of ACA) Read More

ACA in partnership with leading organizations, has created the Rising Tide Education Program, helping new angels discover the basics of becoming an angel investor with this unique collection of educational resources. Webinars (One hour programs) Articles: What new angels need to know Podcasts: 20-minute educational videos The Rising Tide Program was created to increase diversity of the angel community by educating under-represented groups.  We found that the content is so good that it works for any type of angel, so we’re sharing it here!  Entrepreneurs may also learn how angels think from these video podcasts and webinars.  The programs are funded by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.  The founders and lead angels of the first US Rising Tide Fund are pictured below. Enjoy the webinars and the rest of the content for free here

The International Council for Science has published a report that explores the nature of interlinkages between the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). It is based on the premise that a science-informed analysis of interactions across SDG domains can support more coherent and effective decision-making, and better facilitate follow-up and monitoring of progress. The fundamental underlying principle vertebrating the research is that all SDG interact with one another. In other words, by design they are an integrated set of global priorities and objectives that are fundamentally interdependent. Policymakers, practitioners and scientists working at the global, regional, national and local levels on implementing or supporting the implementation of the SDG are the intended audience for this report. Here you can read the SDG Guide to Interactions

The Global Impact Investment Network (GIIN) has recently published a new report, Lasting Impact: The Need for Responsible Exits, which reveals insights into how impact investors enable the organizations and projects they finance to expand and deepen their impact beyond the duration of their investment. The report describes a variety of approaches taken by investors—to select, manage, and ultimately exit their investments responsibly. This report outlines impact investors’ approaches to achieving responsible exits, drawing insights from interviews with more than 30 investors and entrepreneurs and a review of existing resources on the topic. It includes a theoretical analysis and four case studies. Investors might be interested in reading this excellent piece of research as inspiration for considering their role in creating long-term, wide-reaching, positive impact. Download the report

The Capital Markets Union project (CMU) aims to strengthen the single market by deepening the integration of investment across the European Union. Improved access to finance is a key component of this project, in particular for start-ups, small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and young companies with innovative growth plans. Historically, European SMEs have been primarily dependent on bank finance. In the wake of the financial crisis, this source of funding has been restricted by refinancing capacity, risk appetite and capital adequacy of the banking sector. This has forced young, growing and innovative businesses to seek finance from different sources, such as venture capital and business angels. This study investigates the part that tax incentives for venture capital and business angels can play in fostering investment, with the intention of promoting the diffusion of best practice across Member States. In doing so, this study recognises that tax incentives form part of a broader set of policy tools and that it is important to consider the broader policy mix when analysing tax incentives. Download

The EBAN 2016 Statistics Compendium is Europe’s most extensive annual research on the activity of business angels and business angel networks. It provides information on the overall early stage market, on how business angel networks operate and insights into their investment attitudes and demography. In 2016, the early stage investment market in Europe totaled 9.9 billion euros, out of which 6.7 billion euros was invested by business angels, an increase of 8,2% from 2015! EBAN’s Statistics Compendium is based not only on the information provided by European business angel networks, Federations of BANs, individual business angels and other validated early stage investors who responded to EBAN’s Survey, but also based on data published in Crunchbase, Zephyr (Bureau va Dijk) database, governmental BA co-investment funds and tax breaks reports, and national and regional research studies on angel investment. This year’s edition of the Statistics Compendium also features data and information from the European Commission study “Understanding the Nature and Impact of the business angels in Funding Research and Innovation”, in which EBAN participated in as a partner organization together with Inova+, ZEW and Business Angels Europe. The Business Angels Funding study has been prepared for the European Commission, however it only reflects the views of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which might be made of the information contained therein. More information on the European Union is available on the internet (http://europa.eu). {{ vc_btn:title=+Download+EBAN%27s+2016+Statistics+Compendium&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2017%252F11%252FStatistics-Compendium-2016-Final-Version.pdf%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }} {{ vc_btn:title=Download+EBAN%27s+2016+Statistics+Infographic&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2017%252F11%252FStatistics-Compendium-Infographics.png%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

The investment of business angels in Research and Innovation (R&I) is a crucial complement to supporting start-up companies through national incentives to invest. It represents the most significant source of early stage equity investment in young and R&I firms, and angels invest throughout Europe. However, little is known about business angels and their investment behaviour throughout European venture capital markets. This report presents the outcome of a European Commission study aimed at filling this gap, in which EBAN participated in as a partner organization together with Inova+, ZEW and Business Angels Europe. Business Angels and their impact on firms were characterized through a survey of European business angels as well as interviews with business angels and business angel-backed firms. Moreover, extensive field research was done on the national context business angels operate in as well as policy measures aimed at supporting business angels. In what follows below, a short overview of the main findings is presented. The European Commission study “Understanding the Nature and Impact of the business angels in Funding Research and Innovation” has been prepared for the European Commission, however it only reflects the views of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which might be made of the information contained therein. More information on the European Union is available on the internet (http://europa.eu). {{ vc_btn:title=Download+European+Commission+Study+on+Business+Angels+Funding&style=flat&color=danger&align=center&link=url%3Ahttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.eban.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2017%252F12%252FFinal-Report_Understanding-the-Nature-and-Impact-of-the-business-angels-in-Funding-Research-and-Innovation_FV_Formatted_Revised13.12.2017.pdf%7C%7Ctarget%3A%2520_blank%7C }}

EBAN is proud to present the new edition of its much anticipated annual mapping of fiscal incentives available to business angels in Europe in 2016. EBAN, the European Trade Association for Business Angels, Seed Funds, and other Early Stage Market Players, joined efforts with BOFIDI this year to develop its annual publication. Fiscal incentives have an important role in stimulating the activity of business angels – early stage equity investors in start-ups – by encouraging private investors to diversify their portfolio towards unquoted (primarily equity) investments in high-growth, innovative companies. This can significantly increase the pool of private individuals ready to make an equity investment in a start-up. Download the Compendium.

This edition of EBAN’s Compendium of Co-investment Funds with Business Angels is intended to assist business angels, entrepreneurs and other readers interested in the early stage investment market and learning, first of all, about different forms of collaboration between business angels and public authorities. It provides information on one of the most important incentives to stimulate and organise angel activity: angel investment funds and co-investment funds. In addition, it also aims to aid in discovering different forms of collaboration between business angels and other private players in the early-stage market. The compendium integrates a list of co-investment funds, angel funds, and some other relevant co-investment activities identified in Europe associated with detailed elaborations in the form of case studies about some of the abovementioned, including information as well on the expected market impact and challenges faced by these funds. Download the Compendium.

This glossary, produced by Anges Québec, contains original definitions as well as definitions imported from various sources. To that effect, Anges Québec thanks First Angel Network, GoTroo, National Angel Capital Organisation (NACO), Osler Hoskin & Harcourt and Réseau Capital for their contribution to the realization of this project. Download Glossary in English Download Glossary in French

Below you will find the 4 term sheets produced for the NACO Common Docs project Common Shares A Common Share deal aligns founders and funders with the same class of shares, and fully negotiates all rights and terms in the Shareholders Agreement. It may be used at any stage of deal before a Series A, as long as valuation can be agreed on. Read the full Common Share educational notes  Series Seed Preferred Shares This Preferred Share term sheet is sometimes also called “Preferred Light”. It is commonly used for a later and larger Seed round. Read the full Preferred Shares educational notes Convertible Loan Convertible Debt is commonly used as part of the first financing of a company when valuation can’t be agreed on, or as a bridge ahead of a larger seed or Series A round. Read the full Convertible Loan educational notes Canadian SAFE The Canadian Simple Agreement for Future Equity (SAFE) is modelled after the Y Combinator SAFE. We have included a cap and a discount in this default template, and have also added a maturity date, as we believe that is more appropriate for the Canadian market. Read the full Canadian SAFE educational notes Visit the NACO website to access the 4 term sheets produced for the NACO Common Docs project.

NACO has announced the release of the first NACO Academy publication A Practical Guide to Angel Investing: How to Achieve Good Returns. Written by Dr. Steven A. Gedeon, the Guidebook is a practical and comprehensive guide to early-stage funding. The guidebook is a must-read for new Angel investors, experienced Angel investors, and entrepreneurs seeking Angel financing. “Early-stage investing is an art and science, which this book marries  beautifully. Steven’s book is the ultimate “How To” for this rapidly expanding field, written by someone who has seen the ecosystem from both sides—as entrepreneur and Angel—and who now leads the next generation  as professor.”   – Gerry Pond, Co-Founder, Mariner Partners Inc. Find more information in the NACO Resources webpage A list of other NACO reports can be accessed here

Industry calls for more action on risk capital for Europe’s high growth firms. AFME has published a new report examining the specific challenges associated with raising risk capital for small and mid-size high-growth companies in the European Union. The report aims to inform policymakers about the challenges facing Europe’s high growth companies in obtaining crucial early stage financing. “The Shortage of Risk Capital for Europe’s High Growth Businesses” was authored by AFME with the support of 12 other European organisations representing all the different stakeholders involved in pre-IPO finance. These include the European Investment Fund (EIF), seven other European trade associations representing business angels (BAE, EBAN), venture capital (Invest Europe), accountants (Accountancy Europe) and crowdfunding (ECN), as well as stock exchanges (FESE, Deutsche Bӧrse, LSE, Euronext, Nasdaq). Simon Lewis, Chief Executive of AFME, said: “Europe’s shortage of risk capital for high-growth businesses is a pressing issue, particularly given the enduring low growth environment. Collectively, we are pleased to present this pan-European report providing data and recommendations on improving access to equity and venture debt financing for high growth companies. The industry looks forward to working with the Commission to help further the Capital Markets Union and growth agenda and boost EU companies’ competitiveness.” Olivier Guersent, Director-General at DG FISMA, said: “The European Commission welcomes this new pan-European study on the shortage of risk capital for ambitious firms seeking to expand. This is one of the core challenges that the EU’s Capital Markets Union seeks to address. The inadequate supply of risk capital has been a longstanding constraint on European firms with high growth potential. Under CMU, the Commission has tabled several initiatives to improve the functioning of these markets. However, there is no quick fix. European policy-makers need to stay focussed on this structural challenge in the years ahead. This report is very timely as the Commission prepares to refresh the CMU action plan through its mid-term review.” The report identifies the main barriers preventing the creation and growth of businesses in Europe and makes the following recommendations to address them: Fragmented start-up market Establishing a single EU framework for start-ups with standard rules across EU Member States would enable young businesses to scale-up across borders and facilitate access to 508 million customers. This could be done through the establishment of an EU expert group to focus on the revision of the various EU legal frameworks, insolvency laws and tax incentives for investors. There is already momentum for such a transformation with the recent Commission Start-up and Scale-up Initiative, including the proposal for an Insolvency Directive; Lack of awareness of risk capital benefits among businesses Improving awareness among entrepreneurs of how to gain and retain risk capital investors would reduce business failure rates. Better business structure and governance from the start would increase the chances of raising subsequent rounds of financing from professional investors. Businesses with stronger cash positions would emerge, leading to higher chances of survival; Under-developed business angel and crowdfunder capacity Unlocking business angel and crowdfunder capacity would allow them to invest in companies across the EU. Creating a single market for business angel investors by aligning best practices and ensuringconsistent tax incentives in the EU28 could be one way to provide more risk capital to Europe’sinnovative businesses. Education, training and certification of individual investors, as well as thepromotion of the role of syndicates and networks with a European reach, would also increase thenumber of crowdfunders and business angels; Insufficient business angel exit opportunities If business angels and crowdfunders are to invest more, they must have access to better exitopportunities. The development of networks and training, as well as the development of secondarymarkets for private shares at EU level would enable such access; Insufficient venture capital funding If Europe’s VC industry is to provide more funding, it needs to scale up. This could be achieved byproviding incentives for investing in VC funds, encouraging investment in the asset class andpromoting pension savings in the EU28 generally. Achieving a workable EU-level marketing passportfor VC fund managers (as part of the review of the EuVECA) and the launch of the pan-European fundof funds are good steps forward; Small venture debt market Developing the venture debt market in Europe could provide the necessary funding for VC-backedbusinesses to reach their next milestone. Venture debt can fill the gap between two VC equity rounds. Unfavourable environment for businesses to access public markets Building a favourable environment for access to capital markets would help small businesses accessthe information necessary to initiate long-term growth financing strategies. To do this, thedevelopment of SME advisory ecosystems of issuers, advisors, entrepreneurs, academics andEuropean centres of innovation is recommended; Sluggish primary equity market There is a need to tackle the decline in IPOs, which play a crucial role in Europe’s economy. Theproposed Prospectus Regulation is a great opportunity and further initiatives should be undertaken,such as supporting new categories of investors to invest in high-growth companies. The report outlines the various sources of EU financing available to Europe’s high-growth businesses, (including family and friends, accelerators, equity crowdfunding, business angels, venture capital, venture debt, public markets and public funding), but highlights that many of these are underused: Europe could invest more in risk capital: three million EU citizens hold non-real estate assets in excess of €1m – if even a small part of this were used for business angel investing, it would make a huge difference; European companies received €1.3m on average from venture capital compared to €6.4m in the US; Venture debt is underused: only 5% of VC-backed EU companies obtain venture debt financing compared to 15-20% in the US and 8-10% in the The report also includes an analysis of the main providers of risk capital for small innovative companies in Europe, showing that there is room for improvement in the European risk capital landscape: Business angels invested in half the number of businesses in Europe compared to the US. Only 12 EU Member States have tax incentives for early-stage investments; VC funds in Europe invested €4.1bn compared to

This publication is the result of an agreement signed between EBAN and HBAN with the purpose of serving the organisations’ mutual goals of increasing the quantity, quality and success of angel investments in Europe, thus creating a better understanding of angel investment for potential new angel investors and entrepreneurs. The current document is an adaptation of the original version “Raising Business Angel Investment Insights for Entrepreneurs” which was initially targeted to the Irish market. The reproduction and/ or adaptation of this guide by other parties is subject to approval of EBAN and HBAN. Executive summary This guide has been prepared to demystify the equity raising process for entrepreneurs. Raising external equity is very different to raising other types of finance. The following tips are developed further in this guide: » The relationship between investor and entrepreneur is like a marriage but one with a planned divorce; » tarting building the relationship early, ideally before you need any money; » Undertake due diligence on your potential investor and find out what is attractive to them; » Make sure that every contact with a potential investor addresses the top three investment criteria (management, exit and revenue potential) in some form; » The best exit is a trade sale for cash…it usually maximises value for all shareholders; » The revenue potential of your company must demonstrate a scalable business that is capable of producing significant returns for an investor; » The best business plans have a great executive summary – the point of an executive summary is to succinctly sell the investment opportunity, not to just describe the business; » A compelling and fully costed business plan is essential; » Be on top of, and understand, the numbers; » Founders should have ideally had made or intend to make a cash equity investment in the company, i.e. have ‘skin in the game’; » Have a realistic valuation expectation – the investor has to make an attractive return on their investment; » An equity deal is not just about the headline valuation; and » An apparently attractive high valuation can be undermined by high liquidation preference multiples. Raising external equity is rewarding and worthwhile if it accelerates the growth of your business.  If an external investor is getting an attractive return then you are likely to be getting an even better return. This is a win-win.