Mike Butcher
TechCrunch
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Recent articles by Mike:
OpenReplay raises $4.7M for its open source tool to find the bugs in sites –
When users on websites and apps find they have problems, developers have various tools to record what they are doing in order to find out what went wrong. But these can involve cumbersome methods like screenshots, and back-and-forth emails with customers. ContentSquare and Medallia are products that primarily target marketers and product managers rather than developers, who […] → Read More
These four iconic European founders plan to kick the asses of VCs who never started a company
Until recently, Taavet Hinrikus, co-founder of Wise, and Sten Tamkivi, co-founder of Teleport, had banded together as a sort of “mini Angel brand” known as “Taavet+Sten.” Tamkivi has done around 50 angel deals, Hinrikus has, reportedly, done as many as 150. But they were effectively pooling their personal capital as angel investors. However, evidently this […] → Read More
UK’s Magical Mushroom Company uses Mycelium to replace plastic packaging –
Global plastic waste has more than doubled, and 40 percent of that waste comes from packaging. Luckily there are no shortage of sustainable packaging startups in Europe. Just take a look: Circleback (Germany), Recup (Germany), Sourceful (UK), one • five (Germany), Shellworks (UK), Woola (Estonia), Papkot (France), Biotic (Israel), FunCell (France) and Traceless (Germany). The […] → Read More
Dublin-based corporate gifting platform &Open raises $26M Series A led by Molten Ventures –
Last year we covered how “&Open” (yes, “ampersand open,” pronounced “And Open”) had raised a raised $7.2 million seed to make it easier for brands to send gifts to customers to boost loyalty and engagement. According to one study customers who feel emotionally connected to a brand after receiving gifts have a 306% higher lifetime […] → Read More
Amsterdam cyber startup Hadrian closes €10.5M Seed for platform which simulates hacker attacks –
As companies grow they expose more of themselves online and become harder to defend in terms of cybersecurity. One report estimates that 30%-40% of a company’s IT infrastructure isn’t even known about by the security team. So startups have appeared with an ‘offensive’ profile in order to similate cyber attacks. One such is Amsterdam-based Hadrian, […] → Read More
UK-based Playter closes $55M round for its BNPL platform aimed at SMEs –
Europe has no shortage of ‘buy now, pay later’ startups and a quick search is revealing. Berlin-based fintech startup Mondu has taken in €39.9 million to expand its B2B BNPL solution. Madrid’s RITMO scored over €184 million. Tranch in the UK is launching BNPL to a B2B market with €4 million. Berlin-based Billie raises about […] → Read More
Paris-based Breega closes €250M fund, opens Barcelona office to back Iberian startups –
Paris-originated VC Breega wasn’t enormously well-known in the VC world (it only closed its 1st fund in 2015) until, perhaps, it started attracting attention with its second €110 million Seed fund, just under a year go. It’s portfolio now includes a number of scale-ups including Moneybox, Cuvva, Coverflex and Libeo. Perhaps part of its ‘secret […] → Read More
Kiko Ventures joins the ClimateTech investment stampede with a $450m Evergreen fund –
Given the dire predictions about the impending (and basically already here) Climate Crisis, the world can’t get enough ClimateTech funds right to power new innovation that can address the issue. FTSE 250-listed investment firm IP Group has been investing in the area previously but has clearly ‘read the runes’ and re-shaped its existing investment strategy, […] → Read More
LocalGlobe becomes Phoenix Court Group, hits $500M first close for new funds, adds an Impact twist –
Saul Klein is a busy man. As co-founder, with his father Robin, of LocalGlobe, one of the longest-running VCs in Europe, he has overseen a wide range of initiatives – among other things the pair are passionate investors and philanthropists in LocalGlobe’s HQ’d area of Somers Town, London – as well as the more conventional […] → Read More
Google for Startups deploys $4M of grant funding to 40 Black-led startups across Europe –
In an effort to kick-start a greater number of Black tech Founders in Europe, last year Google for Startups launched a $2m (£1.5m) grant fund to help tackle the quite obvious and stark racial inequality in the European tech industry. That fund ended up doubling to $4m (£3m) and now 40 Black-led tech starups across […] → Read More
Project A Ventures closes its fourth fund, hitting $375M, the largest to date –
Project A Ventures launched 10 years ago in Berlin when a handful of a ex-Rocket Internet players decided they’d try their own hand at this startup stuff. Since then they’ve done pretty well, investing early in some of the biggest European tech companies, such as Trade Republic, Kry, sennder, WorldRemit, Spryker, and Voi. The VC has […] → Read More
Behavioral cybersecurity platform CybSafe raises $28M Series B led by Evolution Equity Partners –
Last year, UK cybersecurity startup CybSafe, a “behavioral security” platform, raised a $7.9 million in a Series A. This SaaS product with a per-user-based, subscription licensing model has a “behavior-led” platform that manages people-related security. In other words, it uses behavioral science and data analytics to help employees be more cybersecurity aware. Users get microlearning […] → Read More
The race to create the perfect home setup service is on, as Just Move In raises $5M –
In recent years startups have turned their attention to what’s known as ‘home setup services’. This is where utilities and moving-in are all aggregated into one package which is managed digitally, (hopefully), making two whole moving home process a lot easier and a lot less stressful. Updater in the US launched over 10 years ago […] → Read More
Endurance events marketplace Let’s Do This raises $60M Series B led by Craft and Headline –
The appropriately named endurance (so: running, triathlon, cycling, etc.) events marketplace Let’s Do This (a YC alumni) appeared a couple of years ago listing all kinds of endurance activities globally and attracting the backing of stars such as Usain Bolt and Serena Williams, alongside more standard venture investors such as EQT. Founded by Alex Rose […] → Read More
Smiler comes up with a different kind of gig economy for event and venue photographers –
Traditional venue photography providers like DEI Global, MagicMemories, Picsolve and Sharingbox are reliant on fixed equipment, permanent staffing costs, and on-site printed products. So Amsterdam, Netherlands-based Smiler came up with a different approach. Freelance photographers can simply use th… → Read More
France’s Alven VC launches 6th fund with a hard cap of €350M –
With a heritage that goes back to the fabled times of 2000 A.D. (since when it has backed 160 European teams) Paris-based early stage fund Alven, has something of a reputation to keep up. After investing in unicorns such as Qonto, Dataiku, Algolia, Stripe and Ankorstore, it now has €2B in assets under management. But […] → Read More
Zinc heads towards new $41M tech-for-good fund to back pre-team talent solving big problems –
So-called “tech for good” accelerators addressing such worthy-sounding subjects as ESGs and SDGs have appeared in the last few years. Some observers have dismissed these efforts as scalable only put to a point. However, the evidence is mounting that they are increasingly attracting some of the world’s best talent, because the world’s best talent does […] → Read More
Berlin-based B2B BNPL platform Mondu raises $43M Series A led by Valar in the US –
Given the likely global recession, small businesses are reaching for new kinds of financing. Thus, the Buy Now Pay Later business model is now expanding into this B2B world at a rate of knots. Playter has raised backing to do this, as has Hokodo, Billie and Tranch, to name a few other players. But in […] → Read More
Viola Credit closes $700M fund to provide asset-based lending FinTech startups –
Fintech startup and alternative credit asset manager Viola Credit, has closed its latest $700 million fund which provides asset-based lending capital to FinTech, PropTech, and InsurTech startups. If this FinTech play reminds you of Silicon Valley Bank, then think again. The latter provides corporate lending, also known as venture lending. Instead, Viola provides lending capital to […] → Read More
With the pandemic leaving many searching, group support app Circles raises new round –
Between one-to-one therapy and free online forums, people search for a range of solutions to mental health therapy online. Especially since the pandemic increased anxiety and depression rose by 25% globally (according to WHO) and also deepened an epidemic of loneliness. Among players in the online group emotional support space there is Pace (which raised […] → Read More