Tech type: Not tech-based

EIT InnoEnergy

EIT InnoEnergy is a multi-LP fund focusing on energy-related startups in Europe. They have excellent connections, and know the public sector especially thoroughly.

Prefer B2C but others are also interesting. They prefer co-investing but also invest solo.

EIT Innoenergy is a Pan European investor in the cleantech ecosystem. With a strong focus on impact technologies, aiming to empower citizens, provide access to clean(er) energy, and encourage international cooperation. Thematic tracks include renewables, mobility, battery, hydrogen, storage, smart cities, energy efficiency, smart grid, circular economy. A worldwide reach with offices in Poland (responsible for the geographical region ranging from Estonia to Turkey), Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, and the U.S.

Our aim is to support sustainable energy innovations that provide the industry with derisked solutions. These innovative companies reduce energy costs, increase system performance and competitiveness, while decreasing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and creating jobs.

Blue Minds

The Blue Minds Group focuses on innovative solutions to transform our energy system and industrial value chains. They build innovative companies, invest in promising tech teams and help industry create new skills, promote talents, and develop business models for the digital age.

They invest in very early stage.

They also help companies expand into the German-speaking market (DACH countries).

 

Tehnopol Startup Incubator

Tehnopol Startup Incubator is located in Tallinn, Estonia. Applications are open all through the year, selection process and intake are in batches around the year.

Current focus areas are health tech, space tech, B2B ICT, greentech and smart cities. Startups from other areas are also welcome.

Most of their participating companies are B2B or B2C. They also have a separate program focused on the needs of B2G startups, which they’re happy to tell more about.

Participating teams have to have or establish a company in Estonia (takes 15 minutes) within a month of joining the program.

Nordic Startup School

Nordic Startup School accelerates startups and invests into the best ones.

They do two batches per year. Spring batch application period is in Jan-Feb, and program start is in Feb-March. Autumn batch application Aug-Sep, and program start is around the end of September. Program length is three months, but they support the best ones for 9 + 12 months more for a total of 2 years.

They’re interested in startups from all areas, but generally not from health and education sectors.

Fazer Lab

Fazer is looking for food tech startups who focus on food (the substance), raw materials and food production process technologies.

For example solutions that help in berry or cocoa availability around the year would be interesting.

They’re interested especially in commercial cooperation, and also willing to invest in a few select startups.

Startup introductions can be sent to Jussi Loponen: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zloponen/. Please include an introductory text in the connection request.

Coinvest Capital

Generalist co-investment fund from Lithuania. They invest alongside three or more angels or VC funds that are not backed by public money. They consider all business sectors, however the fund wouldn’t invest into weapons or vices (cigarettes, gambling etc.).

They can fund up to 70% of a total investment round. They cap their return at 6% annually during the investment period, with the excess shared among other investors of the syndicate. The investments must benefit Lithuania, e.g. companies need to have or open an office and hire employees in Lithuania.

OP Lab

OP Lab is the startup collaboration unit of OP, a major Finnish bank. They seek startups to purchase innovations from as an early adopter, while also seeking for more mature startups to acquire.

Their focus is on solutions that are linked to fields of banking, insurance & finance in general. Fields such as fintech, insurtech, AI, biometrics, customer experience, and loyalty etc. are of interest to them.

They’re happy to connect with startups that are interested in the Finnish market.

Access 4 Future

Access 4 Future is a market entry program for startups wishing to help people in the target countries get better access to healthcare: India, Niger, Philippines, Egypt, Thailand.

The program’s support includes connections locally (piloting), regionally and globally (scalability) and covers startups’ piloting costs. Each location has a different challenge for startups to help in, and they have different application periods during autumn 2020. Challenges include for example furthering the education and training of doctors.

The chosen solutions have to be scaleable. For example a solution that will be piloted in two hospitals might later expand to the state, then the country and finally internationally.

 

LitCapital

LitCapital is focusing on funding small cap growth companies with proven traction and a scalable solution. They prefer B2B companies, but are interested in especially strong B2C or B2G cases as well. Their home market is Lithuania, and they’re also looking at companies from nearby EEA markets. A connection with Lithuania is a plus.

Most often they are the lead investor of a round. They seek a stake of 20% or more and will actively participate on the board level in growing the company.

Practica Capital

Practica Capital is a Lithuanian fund investing especially into early-stage companies, focusing especially on tech companies in the Baltics. They also invest into companies in some nearby areas or with Baltic founders elsewhere in Europe.

They have an especial liking for marketplaces, SaaS, space tech, mobility, fintech, big data, AI, and interdisciplinary life science startups, including health tech and biotech. Drug discovery and other solutions with very long development time spans are out of their focus. They prefer tech solutions but are also interested in especially strong non-tech solutions as well. Idea stage companies are only interesting with founding teams that include serial entrepreneurs.

They are an active investor, helping the deals happen by getting the rest of the needed investors on board.

They have invested in more than 50 companies, leading to more than 20 exits.

If they lead the investment they often take a board seat, especially in fields where their experience is helpful.