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Welcome to another edition of 🔍 Startup Researcher - Europe, your essential digest delivering the latest news and premium insights on startups and venture capital across the region 🌍

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📰 Important News

• Revolut reported a $1.46 billion profit for 2024 and is preparing to launch UK banking services in 2025 after strong growth.

• Wayve expanded to Japan with a new testing hub and a commercial deal with Nissan to advance autonomous vehicle tech.

• Zopa Bank doubled profits to $45.4 million with growing deposits and expanding into current accounts while exploring AI assistants and acquisitions for future growth.

• ATMOS Space Cargo became the first private European company to achieve orbital re-entry with its PHOENIX 1 capsule.

• According to a survey by Handpicked Berlin, Berlin tech salaries stagnated at $85,254, while the gender pay gap widened to over 20% in 2025.

💸 Top Funding Rounds

• Granite Bio has emerged from stealth with $100 million in funding to develop first-in-class antibodies targeting inflammation, autoimmunity, and fibrosis.

• Noxtua closed a $92.5 million Series B round to create Europe's first sovereign legal AI tool for law firms and companies using European data.

• Global Data Privacy Solutions provider Didomi secured $82.9 million from private equity firm Marlin Equity Partners.

• Symbiotic raised $29 million in Series A funding to enhance its universal staking platform with cross-chain support and new economic primitives.

• Froda completed a $22.9 million Series B round to expand its embedded finance services for SMEs across Europe with backing from Incore Invest.

💰️ Notable Exits

• Aleph Alpha acquired AI startup thingsThinking to enhance its generative AI platform with domain-specific solutions for industry and finance sectors.

• Main Capital Partners acquired Trace One, a global PLM software provider, marking its first French investment to expand innovation and global presence.

• Datatonic acquired data engineering firm Syntio to enhance its AI and data solutions, expanding its global reach and service capabilities across industries.

• Didomi acquired French server-side tagging platform Addingwell to enhance data privacy and consent management.

• Socket acquired Coana to enhance its supply chain security platform with advanced reachability analysis and speeding up vulnerability remediation.

🏦 About Investors

• Hedosophia raised $200-300 million for its secondaries fund to support growth-stage tech companies in the US and Europe.

• P101, a Milan-based VC firm, closed a $287 million fund to back early-stage startups across Europe, signaling strong interest in Italy’s tech ecosystem.

• Kompas raised $172 million for its second fund to invest in industrial tech for decarbonisation and resilience.

• RockawayX closed a $125 million fund to invest in European blockchain startups amid growing crypto interest following regulatory shifts.

• First Momentum raised $40.1 million for its second fund to support energy, AI, and automation startups with a focus on B2B and pre-seed investments.

🚀 Startup of the Week

Introducing our Startup of the Week 🏆

Granite Bio

Granite Bio AG, a clinical-stage biotech company founded in 2021 and based in Basel, Switzerland, develops first-in-class antibodies for inflammatory, autoimmune, and fibrotic diseases. The company raised $100 million, including a $30 million Series A and a $70 million Series B, led by Versant Ventures, Novartis Venture Fund, Forbion, and Sanofi Ventures. Its pipeline includes GRT-001, in Phase 1a trials, and GRT-002, entering clinical trials in 2026, both developed with Versant’s Ridgeline Discovery Engine.

💼 Investor of the Week

Introducing our Investor of the Week 🏆

Hedosophia

Hedosophia, a secretive London-based VC firm founded by Ian Osborne in 2012, raised $200-300 million for a secondaries fund to back growth-stage tech companies in the US and Europe. The firm has been involved in notable investments, including a $386.05 million secondary share sale in Vinted, although it's unclear if that came from the new fund. Known for its discretion, Hedosophia has backed major tech names like Spotify, Uber, and Alibaba, with a network that reportedly includes figures like Bill Gates.

🤑 Opportunity Radar

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