BalticVC

Estonian studio Dark Math Games has raised investment from Margus Linnamäe's company MM Grupp. The amount of the investment was not disclosed, but according to Gamesindustry.biz, which shared the news, it was a seven-figure sum.

Estonian accelerator Startup Wise Guys has invested in Italian platform Restworld , which connects restaurants with potential employees, and Spanish indoor climbing athlete tracking startup Lizcore .

Taavet+Sten, the venture investment company of Wise co-founder Taavet Hinrikus and Teleport founder Sten Tamkivi, will change its name to Skaala . According to the team, Taavet +Sten is growing, and their plans are bigger than just a few of them, hence they have a broader name. 

Lithuanian Tech Zity Vilnius has raised €37M. Tallinn-based Bigbank  invested €28M in the form of a loan. €6.1M was secured from 49 private investors, including Darius Zakaitis and Mantas Mikuckas, and €3M - from the EfTEN Special Opportunities Fund, managed by Estonian real estate fund EfTEN Capital.

Estonian accelerator Startup Wise Guys has received a stake in Nigerian financial technology company Rise , which has acquired Startup Wise Guys' portfolio company Kenyan fintech Hisa. Details of the deal were not disclosed. 

Plural, co-founded by Estonian entrepreneurs Sten Tamkivi and Taavet Hinrikus, has led a $4.6M round in the Cambridge University spin-out of a developer of lithium-sulfur batteries Molyon . Cambridge-based IQ Capital, Cambridge Enterprise, UK-based Parkwalk Advisors, and angel investors also participated in the round.

Estonian security and logistics solutions provider GSMvalve has acquired Latvian logistics software development company Intelligent Systems SIA .

Estonian accelerator Startup Wise Guys has invested in Paris-based Klart AI , which develops AI assistants for teams. The amount of the pre-seed round and the names of the other investors were not disclosed.

Madis Lehtmets, co-founder of Estonian construction software developer Remato, will head the Estonian Private Equity and Venture Capital Association ( EstVCA ). He will take on the responsibilities of the new CEO in January 2025, which will include maintaining and strengthening the organization’s position as an advocate for the industry's interests and developing relationships with its members, legislators, and other organizations representing the industry in Estonia and abroad.

Tallinn-based Frankenburg Technologies , the defense industry company of Taavi Madiberk (founder of Estonian supercapacitor designer Skeleton Technologies), has raised €1.5M from Shellona, ​​registered in the Cayman Islands. After the deal, the company's valuation increased to €55M.

We want to share a podcast, made by Google AI-pilot. It consists of a short review of the Baltic Startups Survey 2024, revealing its main ideas in plain English. If you prefer to get information informally, you should listen to it.

Venture capital firm Plural, founded by Estonian entrepreneurs Sten Tamkivi and Taavet Hinrikus, has led a €151.6 round in Munich-based aerospace startup The Exploration Company (TEC). Balderton Capital was a co-lead investor with participation from Bessemer Venture Partners, NGP Capital, French Tech Souverainete, DeepTech & Climate Fonds (DTCF), Bayern Kapital, EQT Ventures, Red River West, Cherry Ventures, Promus Ventures, and Omnes Real Tech Fund.

Estonian startup Sera  has raised investment. The pre-seed round was led by Estonian Specialist VC with participation from a co-founder and CEO of Bolt Markus Villig and Kaspar Tiri (a co-founder of the Estonian avatar platform for creating virtual identities Ready Player Me). The amount of the investment was not disclosed.

  Estonian accelerator Startup Wise Guys has invested in Ukrainian startup Pibox. Czech Presto Ventures and Canadian Globalive Capital also participated in the $1.2M round.

Lithuanian startup CyberUpgrade , which has developed an AI-powered solution for enterprise security, has raised €2.5M in a seed round. The round was led by the Finnish Superhero Capital, with participation from Estonian Specialist VC , Lithuanian accelerator Firstpick , and a syndicate of investors from Lithuanian angel investment network NGL. Business angels Maria S. Kalochoritis and Sergey Anikin also participated in the round.

Estonian customer service flow management platform Qminder has secured €3M in a seed round. The round was led by Lithuanian Practica Capital with participation from Jaan Tallinn’s Metaplanet, Latvian BADideas.fund, and angel investors from Toggl, Veriff, Pipedrive, Wise, and Twilio.

Goals and methodology of the survey The BalticVC team studied the startup ecosystem in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania for its Baltic Startup Survey. We sent questionnaires to startup founders from these countries.

Estonian accelerator and fund Startup Wise Guys has invested in Turkish AI-powered startup Lumian Energy , which provides energy management solutions.

Tallinn-based marketplace for refurbished electronics Ringy has raised investment from Estonian  Trind Ventures and a number of Estonian companies. The amount of the deal was not disclosed. 

Estonian electric bicycle manufacturer Ampler Bikes has secured €300K from co-founder of Estonian unicorn Pipedrive Ragnar Sass. Kristjan Maruste, a co-founder of Kõu Mobility Group (which owns 66,9% of Ampler Bikes), made the announcement on Estonian equity funding and trading platform Funderbeam.