Northzone raises record €300m to invest in startups

Despite Brexit, the venture capital firm still believes in British fintech startups

Northzone raises record €300m to invest in startups

Just before taking off for the G20 summit, Theresa May pledged to tell other world leaders that “Britain is open for business”, despite the country’s decision to leave the EU and the subsequent market uncertainty this caused. And venture capital firm Northzone seems to agree: it’s just raised €300m (£252m) from global institutional investors, which will be used to invest in European early-stage startups, including British enterprises.

The firm – which has previously backed Spotify, Trustpilot and MarketInvoice – is one of the largest venture funds in Europe. Commenting on the opportunities it sees in the UK, Jeppe Zink, partner at Northzone in London, said that this has been its fastest raise to date – despite turbulent market conditions.

“The UK is obviously strong in fintech and there is still a huge opportunity to transform the banking space, we are just scratching the surface. We also see lots of interesting companies in sectors like property and insurance, both traditional industries ripe for disruption and ones where the UK is very strong, ” he said.

While Northzone didn’t disclose how much money it would invest into the British startup scene, the news should alleviate some Brexit worries. Additional causes for optimism were revealed last week when R/GA Ventures announced it would launch a UK accelerator for internet of things startups.

Northzone’s latest vote of confidence does suggest that Britain is indeed still open for business.

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Eric Johansson
Eric Johansson
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