Technology

Posted on April 9, 2019 by staff

European VC firm launches £83m growth fund

Technology

A leading European venture capital firm and part of Octopus Group has launches a new £83m fund to back promising companies from across its portfolio.

Octopus Ventures, headquartered in London, will use the new fund to enhance leading European venture capital firm’s ability to back pioneering founders.

As one of Europe’s largest investors, the company has backed over 100 companies over the last decade, including the likes of Elvie, SwiftKey, Magic Pony, Zoopla, Secret Escapes, Depop, Swoon and WaveOptics.

The new fund enhances the team’s ability to back pioneering entrepreneurs, providing additional growth capital.

This latest development takes Octopus Ventures’ funds under management to over £1 billion, allowing the team to invest between £250,000 and £20 million in start-ups with the potential to disrupt their industries.

“Today’s announcement means that we’re part of a small group of investors with the resources to support start-ups from inception all the way to international scale-up,” said Alliott Cole, CEO of Octopus Ventures.

“Over the years, we’ve been lucky enough to work with some of the Europe’s most talented entrepreneurs – the people behind world-class businesses such as Zoopla and Secret Escapes, Big Health and Bought By Many.”

Alex Saint, Co-founder and Chief Executive of Secret Escapes Group, said: “A lot has changed since 2011, when we first started working with the Octopus team. We had ambitious plans and were looking for investors that really understood what we were trying to build – a business that would not only disrupt but redefine the travel industry.”

Octopus Ventures is headquartered in London and New York, with Venture Partners in San Francisco, Shanghai and Singapore who offer exclusive insight and advice to our portfolio companies looking to expand into new markets.

It is part of the Octopus Group which also includes Octopus Energy, Octopus Healthcare, Octopus Investments, Octopus Labs, and Octopus Property.