4 Record-high venture fundraising
Fundraising reached record levels in the Nordic venture segment in 2019, with 17 funds securing a record-breaking €3 billion. Over the last four years, Nordic venture funds have secured almost €6.7 billion.
Already in the first quarter of 2019, the total fundraising surpassed the whole year of 2018, with Verdane’s final closing of Verdane X and Monterro’s closing of Monterro 3 with commitments of €578 million and €241 million respectively.
“Verdane X’s mandate will be flexible, and at a minimum of 100 million NOK (approx. €10.1 million) per case. We can invest both with and without debt, both majority and minority stakes, and in partnership with others. The companies we are looking at are around 10 to 15 years old, with a turnover between 10–15 million Euro, and well-positioned in sectors we expect will have a long-term growth,” says Bjarne K. Lie, partner at the Nordic growth-fund Verdane. Read our interview with Lie in section 6.
Six times the 2018 level
In total, Nordic venture capital managers closed funds for €3 billion, surpassing the previous top year of 2016. Compared to last year, fundraising was six times as high. The activity increased with several large venture funds closing throughout the year.
Among the large ones were EQT Ventures II with €660 million, Creandum V with €265 million and Northzone IX with €450 million. Also, several funds that are focused on health care and life science had final closings, with both Hadean Ventures and Sunstone Capital closing funds in 2019.
“There is an increasing amount of capital available for Nordic venture, but that is up from a relatively low level compared to other ecosystems,” says Daniel Blomquist, operating partner at Creandum.
“For Creandum V, the strategy will be seed funding and round A financing, and we expect a geographic split of 30 to 40 percent in the Nordic and Baltic, 30 to 40 percent in Germany, and the rest in the UK and other parts of Europe,” he adds.
Majority raised in Sweden
Most of the fundraising in the segment was committed to Swedish funds, raising 51 percent of total capital in the Nordics. Norwegian funds raised €1.169million, or 39 percent. Fundraising in Denmark and Finland was considerably lower with €146 and €140 million raised respectively.
It is worth mentioning that this development is likely to continue, with the pipeline in 2020 looking strong. Both new and established fund managers are in the market raising more capital. Besides, many are in the process of closing funds.
Venture funds with closings in 2019
| Fund name | Fund manager | Home country | Amount raised in closing | Close | Raised in total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| byFounders Fund I | byFounders | Denmark | Final | €100m | |
| Creandum V | Creandum | Sweden | €265m | Final | €265m |
| eEquity IV | eEquity | Sweden | Second | 1.000m SEK | |
| EQT Ventures II | EQT | Sweden | €660m | Final | €660m |
| Hadean Capital I | Hadean Ventures | Norway | €36m | Final | €71m |
| Luminar Ventures I | Luminar Ventures | Sweden | €7.7m | Final | €53m |
| Monterro 3 | Monterro | Sweden | €275m | Final | €275m |
| NordicNinja VC | JB Nordic Ventures | Finland | €100m | Final | €100m |
| Sarsia Seed II | Sarsia Seed | Norway | €16.25m | Second | €53.75m |
| Sunstone Life Science Ventures IV | Sunstone Capital | Denmark | €80m | First | N/A |
| Verdane X | Verdane | Norway | €660m | Final | €660m |
| Voima Ventures Fund I | Voima Ventures | Finland | €40m | First | N/A |