VC Angle Weekly Briefing #16: Yet Another New European Unicorn Raises & Klarna Files for $14B US IPO After Tariff Pause
VC Angle Weekly Update #16
Hey - welcome to the sixteenth edition of VC Angle Weekly Updates! As always, we're keeping tabs on what actually matters across 🇪🇺 European tech. If something broke the news this week and it's worth your time, it's probably below. Scroll on for the deals, roles, reads, and events you'll want on your radar.
In This Edition:
n8n becomes the latest European unicorn at a €2B valuation
Klarna revives US IPO plans and launches debit card
OpenAI partners up with Greece
Where top startups’ co-founders met
📰 What Happened This Week
Berlin-based workflow automation platform n8n secured hundreds of millions in Series C funding at a $2.3 billion pre-money valuation, led by Accel with Meritech Capital participating. The AI-powered platform serves over 230,000 active users and 3,000 enterprise customers including Vodafone, Delivery Hero, and Microsoft, hitting $40 million in annual recurring revenue—a fivefold jump from last year.
The valuation represents a massive leap from roughly $350 million just four months (!) after their €55 million Series B in March, highlighting how quickly investors are bidding up AI agent platforms.
Check the list of Europe’s 2025 made unicorns here.
OpenAI partners with Greece to pioneer AI integration in secondary education and startup ecosystem
Greece and OpenAI signed a memorandum of understanding to expand access to AI tools in secondary education, leading Greece to become one of the first countries to implement ChatGPT Edu in academic institutions.
The partnership includes a Greek AI Accelerator Program supporting startups in healthcare, climate, education, and public services, with selected ventures gaining access to OpenAI technology and mentorship.
Swedish fintech Klarna files for $1.27B US IPO at $14B valuation after Trump tariff delay
Swedish buy-now-pay-later giant Klarna filed to raise up to $1.27 billion in its US IPO, pricing 34.3 million shares between $35-$37 to achieve a $14 billion valuation. The company had postponed plans earlier this year following Trump's April tariff announcements that roiled equity markets.
Klarna's latest quarterly revenue hit $823 million despite posting a $53 million net loss, as the company trades on the NYSE under "KLAR" with Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, and Morgan Stanley leading the offering. The valuation marks a dramatic recovery from its 2022 low of $6.7 billion, though still well below its 2021 pandemic peak of $45.6 billion when SoftBank led a funding round.
🔍 Reads & Reports
Research by Palle Broe shows family connections (Stripe's Collison brothers, Anthropic siblings) and university classmates represent the most common co-founder origin stories among major startups. The data spans companies from Facebook and Airbnb (Harvard and RISD classmates) to Figma and Databricks (Brown and UC Berkeley), while workplace connections produced pairs like Revolut (Credit Suisse colleagues) and Miro (Vitamin Group).
The pattern suggests shared experiences build the trust needed for startup success, reinforcing the value of higher education networks despite tech industry skepticism about formal credentials.
Dealroom ranks Spain's best investors as country builds European VC influence
Dealroom released its ranking of Spain's most impactful venture investors, highlighting funds consistently backing the country's breakout startups across tech, fintech, and biotech. Bonsai Partners tops the list, followed by Kibo Ventures, Seaya, and K Fund, with the ranking measuring investors who repeatedly identify winners rather than just writing big checks.
Spain's VC ecosystem has quietly matured over the past decade, building a pipeline that's starting to rival traditional European hubs.
The 6-category scorecard investors use to quietly grade every startup pitch
A founder who worked at a top VC firm before raising $5M for his own startup spilled the internal evaluation framework that most early-stage investors use but never share publicly.
The scorecard grades startups across six areas: team (founder-market fit), market size ($1B+ opportunity), competition (can you win in a crowded space), differentiation (what's defensible), metrics (strong and sticky early traction), and exit potential (clear acquirers or IPO path). The harsh reality? Score high on four or more categories and you're in the game—fall short and conversations get cut off fast.
💶 Where Funds Went (Or Will Go)
Startups
🇩🇪 n8n has closed a low nine-figure round lifting its valuation to $2.4B.
🇸🇪 Hubert raises €2.5M Seed for AI-driven hiring
🇨🇭 Allasso raises $3M (~€2.8M) for AI-powered options analytics
🇬🇧 Cyted Health raises $44M (~€41M) Series B for GI diagnostics
🇫🇷 ArcaScience raises $7M (~€6.5M) Seed for AI-driven drug development insights
🇸🇪 Xampla raises $14M (~€13M) to replace single-use plastic
🇫🇷 Zefir raises €15M to double down on AI for real estate
🇩🇪 FERNRIDE raises €18M Series A extension to expand into defence logistics
🇩🇪 TrustNXT raises €1.6M Pre-seed to fight AI-driven media manipulation
🇫🇷 Alpic raises €6M Pre-seed for MCP-native cloud platform
🇧🇪 Driven raises €1.5M to transform sales commission management
🇦🇹 Ketryx raises $39M (~€36M) for AI compliance in life sciences
🇧🇪 Dalton raises €1M to turn static websites into self-improving growth engines
🇳🇱 TracXon raises €4.75M to scale printed electronics
🇸🇪 Aonic acquires 🇩🇪 Prime Insights in $250M+ deal
🇪🇸 Seaya acquires stake in 🇪🇸 Adsmurai to scale AI-driven marketing
Investors
🇪🇪 Siena Secondary Fund II closes with institutional & founder backing (CEE focus)
🇸🇪 0TO9 launches pan-European fintech venture builder, aiming to build 1,000 fintechs by 2045
💼 Open Roles
Épopée Gestion → Analyst in Nantes, France. Apply here.
50 Partners → Analyst in Paris, France. Apply here.
A2A → Associate in Milan, Italy. Apply here.
dsb → Expansion Intern in Berlin, Germany. Apply here.
Frenchfounders → Analyst in Paris, France. Apply here.
Quadrille Capital → Investment Intern in Paris, France. Apply here.
Plug and Play Tech Center → Ventures Analyst in Valencia, Spain. Apply here.
👋 That’s a wrap for this week.
If you’ve got a round, role, or resource others should see, reply to this or ping us at hello@patrons.vc or send me a message on LinkedIn. We’re building Europe’s finest scouting network at Patrons. If you have a good deal flow, want to expand yours, or want to reach the right investors, send us a message!
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