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Startup funding news 💸

• Vaxdyn, a biotechnology startup from Sevilla, received €14.5M from the EIC Accelerator Program to develop a vaccine platform that combats antimicrobial resistance. The funding includes €2.5M in grants and €12M in equity
• Madrid-based insurtech startup Insurama closed a €5.5M debt raise from BBVA Spark. The company had raised €8M from All Iron and other investors in May
• Madrid-based Masterplace, an edtech company, has secured $2M in seed funding from business angels. The funds will be used to launch an AI-powered educational platform aimed at promoting education for societal benefit
• Bullnet led a round in quantum-inspired solutions company Inspiration-q. The size of the round was not disclosed
• Other rounds of funding:
• Sampling Solutions: €530k, SaaS platform to digitize sampling services from labs
• AsFin: €400k, digital platform for financial advisory
• Alaska Circular: €335k, marketplace of used furniture
• Kokuai: €260k, health tech

M&A activity 🎊

• Indra acquired Deimos, a Spanish company specialized in satellites, to integrate it into its new defense company
• Flywire acquired US startup Invoiced, a SaaS platform that automates the order-to-cash process for B2B finance teams
• Izertis acquired Swiss consulting firm Digiswit, specialized in IT support and legal tech solutions, as part of its international expansion. This is the second international acquisition of the year for Izertis, following the acquisition of UK company Projecting

Investor & accelerator news 🚀

• Adara Ventures Energy I is Adara’s new and first climate tech fund. The firm announced last week a €35M commitment from EIF and that it’s ready to make investments. Target size is €120M. The fund also has the support of Redeia (Elewit) and Grupo Dunas, among others. More info here
• Dutch VC firm LUMO Labs announced the hiring of Spanish Jorge Blasco, who will be responsible for the firm’s investments in Southern Europe. LUMO has €100M to invest
• Lanzadera announced 150 new startups that will join its accelerator for the upcoming September batch
• According to Gananzia, the Basque government has invested more than €30M into VC funds out of Euskadi
• It’s a tough fundraising environment out there, both for firms and companies: Carlos Moure, head of investment firm Hubble Capital, has dissolved the Brain VC Fund, a fund that was going to exclusively invest in AI companies, after failing to raise the expected €30M since its registration
• Local investors active abroad:
• At Kfund we announced our participation in the €2.5M round of Italian startup Skillvue, which offers an AI-based platform to assess the skills of candidates and employees

Startup news 💡

• idealista saw an 18.8% revenue increase in 2023, reaching €259M and positive EBITDA of €94M (+18% YoY). Despite operational growth, the company recorded a loss of €80M due to amortization from previous acquisitions. Spain remained its largest market, generating €155M (+18% YoY), with strong performance also in Italy and Portugal. Idealista's debt increased to €344M. The company employs more than 1,200 across several markets
• Wallapop saw its revenue grow by 25% in 2023, reaching €89M. Despite this growth, the company remains unprofitable, narrowing its losses to €30M (it lost €50M in 2022). The main revenue driver was user transaction services (logistics fees), contributing €67M, while visibility plans and advertising brought in €17M and €5M, respectively. Spain represents 97% of all business
• Odilo, known as the "Netflix of education," is under investigation by the Spanish Prosecutor's Office for allegedly falsifying its financial accounts. The probe follows a report submitted by the company’s investors, who suspect irregularities in the company's financial reporting. Investors account for 53% equity, with the remaining 47% in the hands of the founders and its family. Rodrigo Rodríguez has been replaced as CEO. The company continues to pay the salary of its former CEO. The executive was removed after potential fraud surfaced, but the company decided to uphold his remuneration under specific contractual obligations
• Domestika, once a Spanish unicorn, has faced significant setbacks, losing 30% of its revenue and cutting half of its workforce. The company did €15M in revenue in 2023, vs. €22M the year prior
• Logistics company Paack announced an Employment Regulation Plan (ERE) affecting half of its workers, sparking a call for strikes from the union Comisiones Obreras (CCOO). More info here. In July, the company was finalizing a funding round of “tens of millions” to secure financial stability amid a significant reduction in its valuation
• Online fashion brands doing physical: Minimalism will open its first retail store in Madrid in October 2024
• Startup profiles:
• Xeoris: insurtech

Big company news 🏦

• N26 launched a new investment platform in Spain, allowing users to trade stocks and invest in index funds
• eDreams Odigeo reported a net loss of €1.2M in Q1 of its fiscal year 2025, compared to a profit of €4.1M in the same period last year. Despite this, its adjusted net profit stood at €2.6M, reflecting a 145% increase. The company's Prime subscription service grew 32%, reaching over 6.2M members. eDreams' EBITDA dropped by 25% to €18M, but free cash flow increased 35%. The company aims to surpass 7.25M Prime members by the year's end
• Mango is focusing on its online sales as a key driver for meeting its financial goals, under the leadership of its new director. Online sales account for Mango’s 33% total volume
• Hygreen, a Chinese multinational specializing in green hydrogen, plans to open a large factory in Málaga, creating 300 jobs. The facility will focus on renewable energy and hydrogen production

Interesting reads 🤓

• Miguel Arias (Kfund) wrote “My learnings after 3 years in the VC world“
• Jeronimo ‘Jerolba’ Lopez wrote about his 5 years at Clarity. He reflects on his experience as a Staff Engineer, highlighting the respect for his technical career
• David Bonilla wrote “50 años de SQL”

Podcasts 🎧

• Historias de crecimiento interviewed Jose Luis Fernandez, CEO of Polarbox
• Product Hackers interviewed Clara Fernandez, co-founder of RxLongevity
• Nova interviewed Avinash Sukhwani, co-founder of Payflow