Analysis

May 17, 2019

These were the biggest European tech startup stories this week

Amazon backs Deliveroo, SoftBank mega-deals, and flying cars — it was another big week in the world of European startups.


It was another busy week in the world of European startups. Here were the biggest stories you need to know about:

?‍? SoftBank was at it again: the Japanese bank ploughed $800m into UK supply chain finance business Greensill. What does Greensill actually do? In short, it helps suppliers get paid earlier.

? The big beast that is Amazon led a whopping $575m funding round for food courier Deliveroo. Read more about the new gig economy here.

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? Lab-grown meat was sizzling; Israeli startup Aleph Farms, which grows steak from cattle cells,  raised $12m.
+ International agricultural trader Cargill participated in the round; a sign that traditional meat suppliers are preparing for a big shift in consumer tastes.
+ Meanwhile, US plant-based burger company Impossible Foods raised $300m this week, and is supplying its patties to 7,000 Burger King sites in the country.
+ But Aleph isn’t the only European startup in the lab-grown meat game: here are some others. ?

? It's official: Berlin-based travel business GetYourGuide became the latest European startup to get in on SoftBank's dollar, as it raised a $484m round. Sifted went inside "the Kracken", looking at whether it can become as central a part of the travel industry like Airbnb or Skyscanner.

A Swedish team with experience at Klarna, Spotify and iZettle raised €8m for their startup, Anyfin, which helps consumers refinance their existing consumer loans.

?️ Dublin-based Glofox, which makes management software for fitness studios and gyms, raised €11.5m. The boutique fitness market is growing at 25%.

? Swiss cannabis startup Pure — self-proclaimed Europe’s largest cannabis producer — landed a lucrative deal with a Scottish CBD supplier to distribute its products in the UK.

More than just fundraising ???

? Another electric scooter hits the streets of Europe — this time thanks to sprinter Usain Bolt

? Lilium got airborne: The company managed a first test-flight of its five-seater prototype flying taxi. The electric jet just rose, hovered and descended again, but this is a big step forward for the company; this will now allow them to apply for permission to fly from the aviation authorities.

Jenny Gyllander, founder of the wildly popular Thingtesting Instagram account, which reviews startups' products, left her job at investor Backed VC to turn it into a business. Here’s how.

Two of Barcelona’s creative conferences — Sonár + D and 4 Years From Now — launched a mini-accelerator programme for startups in the creative industries.

? UK and Swedish scaleups attract the most funding in Europe, according to Tech Nation’s latest chunky report. If you could’ve guessed that, do you know which scaleup sectors employ the most people in the UK?

? Digital banks Tide, Monzo and Starling missed out on the latest tranche of money on offer from the UK government to boost competition in the business banking sector. Instead Nationwide, Investec and Co-Op Bank took home the cash. Klarna's CEO is called to the Swedish government over stolen IDs and customers getting into unmanageable debt. (Swedish)

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? Data platform Beauhurst reckons 70% of equity deals in the UK in 2018 went unannounced. Unsurprisingly, smaller earlier-stage deals are less likely to be made public.

?Web Summit, Europe’s biggest tech conference, is hiring for heaps of roles at its Dublin and Lisbon offices. The Lisbon team gets an unusual perk: an orchard.