Focusing on European marketplace startups, DutchFounders close second fund at €62 million

Amsterdam-based DutchFounders has announced the close of their second fund at €62 million, a figure nearly quadruple the first fund which clocked in at €16.7 million. The boutique firm places a specialist emphasis on supporting European marketplace platforms, with 70% of its pre-seed and seed-stage funding reserved specifically for this geography.

While DutchFounders is reaffirming its commitment to marketplace platforms, with this iteration, supply chain services, including technologies that enable frictionless transactions, such as fintech solutions or web3 applications, are at the top of the list.

DutchFounders, or Dutch Founders Fund, was established in the late summer of 2018 and consists of a cooperative that includes ​​successful Dutch entrepreneurs Laurens Groenendijk (Just Eat, Treatwell, Miinto, Hiber), Patrick Kerssemakers (fonQ), Bas Beerens (WeTransfer), Hidde Hoogcarspel (Spacebuzz) and Remco van Zanten (Booking.com, Zalando, Vinted and BCG).

“Besides efficiency gains, a marketplace allows for a more equitable distribution of resources. Not so long ago, the rules were set by the dominant player. Now, people can track their orders, compare reviews, and bargain for a better price, which has created a level playing field for both supply and demand,” elaborated Groenendijk.

Much like Berlin’s Cherry Ventures and Stockholm’s Luminar Ventures, Amsterdam’s operator fund DutchFounders points to the team’s entrepreneurial background as one of its greatest assets and value adds.

Uniquely, DutchFounders remains true to its name and is 100% anchored by over 100 tech entrepreneurs from across Europe. You’ll find no institutional money here.

“We know from experience what it's like to deal with many different stakeholders and overcome early-stage growth pains. Starting a company is easy; building a company is something else. We believe in intense mentoring, from ideation to your series A, that’s why we invest early on and go all-in. We might be unorthodox, but we truly understand the playing field,” concluded Groenendijk.