Listen to the Sifted Podcast on Apple, Spotify and all major platforms.

On this week’s episode of the Sifted Podcast — where each Friday, the team discusses the biggest news coming out of Europe’s tech and startup sector — we’re talking about the latest difficulties facing Berlin-based speedy delivery company Gorillas.

This week Sifted learnt that the company’s global chief people officer Deena Fox and vice president of human resources Linda van Velzen are to leave the company, less than a month after laying off 320 people.

Speaking with Germany correspondent Miriam Partington, we ask how significant these executives were to the business, and address speculation that Gorillas might be preparing for a buyout.

Also on the podcast, we’re discussing Dutch crypto payments startup Fung, which has raised $2.7m to become the “the first regulated payments platform unifying crypto and fiat payment rails” for ecommerce sites. But does anyone really want to pay for their online shopping with crypto?

Another story in the world of fundraising, consumer-focussed VC fund Felix Capital (which has invested in the likes of Deliveroo, Sorare and Dott) raised a whopping $600m fund, proving that well-established VC firms are still successfully raising capital despite market turbulence. 

And startups from Ukraine also received a fundraising boost this week, as the EU’s European Innovation Council announced a €20m fund for Ukrainian startups. 

And to wrap up the podcast, we’re talking about how femtech founders in France are facing challenges in building businesses that address women’s health problems. As it turns out, senior gynaecologists in the country are still largely male and don’t think talking about periods is any of their business, while one cutting-edge startup developing a futuristic treatment for breast cancer survivors says that it’s easier to raise money for an app than hardware.

Listen to the Sifted Podcast on Apple, Spotify and all major platforms.