Vestbee

1 day ago | vestbee.com | Lisa Palchynska

The NN Social Innovation Startup Award, powered by Rubio, is back after a successful debut in 2024. Designed to support early-stage startups using technology to improve mental, physical, or financial well-being, the award returns to spotlight innovation with purpose at The Next Web Conference on June 19 in Amsterdam.

1 day ago | vestbee.com | Lisa Palchynska

Venture capital investment in Europe's defence sector is on the rise, with 2024 funding projected to reach a record $1 billion, according to Dealroom. Since 2018, defence-related startups — particularly in Germany, the UK, and France — have attracted $3 billion, outpacing other VC activity in NATO countries by 25%, driven by geopolitical tensions and the war in Ukraine.

1 week ago | vestbee.com | Lisa Palchynska

The NATO Innovation Fund, a €1 billion vehicle backed by 24 NATO allies, was launched in 2023 to invest in deeptech technologies that strengthen the Alliance’s long-term security and resilience. Since then, it has built a 25-person team across London, Amsterdam, and Warsaw, and has invested in dozens of companies and VC funds, including Join Capital, OTB Ventures, and Faber.

1 week ago | vestbee.com | Lisa Palchynska

April 15, 2025·2 min readPolish fintech startup BidFinance, which develops an auction platform for trading debt portfolios, has raised €1.6 million, as was reported to Vestbee. The recent funding will fuel the firm's international expansion. BidFinance was founded in 2022 by Zenia Karastoyanov, who has a professional background in the financial industry at Deloitte Poland and MCI Capital.

1 week ago | vestbee.com | Lisa Palchynska

April 15, 2025·2 min readBerlin-based startup telli, which enables businesses to automate customer calls using AI voice agents, has secured a $3.6 million pre-seed round. Cherry Ventures and Y Combinator led the funding, with participation from private investors. telli was founded by Philipp Baumanns, Finn zur Mühlen, and Seb Hapte-Selassie. Philipp and Finn were the first two employees of the heat pump unit at Enpal, one of Germany’s energy unicorns. Seb was an early engineer at Pitch.