Free

Today in European Tech: Berlin Brands Group nabs $240 million in debt financing, Babylon eyeing a major SPAC deal, and more

Robin Wauters 13 April 2021
Today in European Tech: Berlin Brands Group nabs $240 million in debt financing, Babylon eyeing a major SPAC deal, and more
Send email Copy link

Hello!

Here's what happened today in European Tech.

Deals

- Germany-based e-commerce company Berlin Brands Group, which creates and acquires online retail brands, announced $240 million in debt financing, its first outside capital, to accelerate global acquisitions.

- London-based leading seed investors LocalGlobe and its Series B sister fund, Latitude, announced to have raised $370 million ($150 million and $220 million, respectively). The new funds will be used to double down on core markets in the UK and Europe, with a long-term view of generating world-class returns.

- Babylon, the UK-based medical startup that connects patients and doctors via an app, is in talks to go public in a merger with a blank-check company run by former Groupon Inc. executives, according to people familiar with the matter. Babylon could be valued at $3 billion to $4 billion in any deal, the people said.

- Sara Murray, who founded location tracking tech company Buddi in 2005, has appointed Zeus Capital to oversee an IPO later this year. A public listing could value Buddi at about £500 million.

- Berlin-based consumer tech-subscription service Grover has raised €60 million in an oversubscribed Series B round.

- Tallinn-based VC firm Tera Ventures has closed a new fund, topping out at €43 million, with a global base of limited partners participating.

- Malta-based agritech VC fund manager PeakBridge and EIT Food have launched a new €30 million seed fund. Dubbed FoodSparks, the fund will invest in pan-European seed and early-stage startups focused on addressing food production, supply, and sustainability.

- Moscow-based e-commerce platform Ozon has signed an agreement to purchase Oney Bank from Russia’s third-largest privately-owned bank, Sovcombank. Subject to regulatory approvals, the transaction will happen in cash, and is not expected to exceed $10 million.

- Paris-based natural insect protein maker Ynsect has acquired Ermelo, Netherlands-based mealworm-ingredients-for-human-food maker Protifarm.

- London-based review-your-healthcare-provider Doctify has raised an additional $7.5 million in its latest funding round, bringing their total raise to date to $20 million.

- We also tracked a large number of (other) European tech funding rounds and M&A transactions, all of which we are putting in a handy list for you on Friday afternoon in our weekly roundup newsletter (note: the full list is for paying customers only). Also check out our European tech news section for ongoing coverage.

Worth Reading/Knowing

- Fighting brain drain and creeping authoritarianism in Russia’s techno-utopian village.

- Europe could be seeing the decline of its gig economy. And new rules could mean higher prices.

- US venture capital firm Icon Ventures is opening a Dublin office as a base to scout out more deals in Europe. The Silicon Valley VC invests in later stage start-ups, usually at the Series B and C rounds.

- Researchers and business executives have stepped up their appeal to the EU this week to remove the threat of a ban on the UK, Israel and Switzerland from multi-billion euro EU quantum and space projects.

Today's Top Tweets

Tell us what you think about this daily roundup and how we can improve it!

And follow us on Twitter of course.

Today in European Tech: Berlin Brands Group nabs $240 million in debt financing, Babylon eyeing a major SPAC deal, and more
Comments
  1. Would you like to write the first comment?

    Would you like to write the first comment?

    Login to post comments
Follow the developments in the technology world. What would you like us to deliver to you?
Your subscription registration has been successfully created.