Vestbee has compiled an extended list of venture capital funds that raised capital during the second quarter of 2026. The collection includes funds originating from the CEE region — investing both locally and across the broader European ecosystem — as well as firms headquartered in Western European markets.
Key takeaways
- Defence and dual-use technologies remain a top priority. New funds from Earlybird, Keen Venture Partners, KOMPAS, and Poland's Expeditions and Balnord show that investors continue to allocate significant capital into strategic industrial technologies.
- AI continues to dominate fundraising. From foundation models and software infrastructure to vertical AI and industrial applications, the majority of recently announced funds look at artificial intelligence.
- Early-stage investing remains highly competitive. Most of the newly raised funds target pre-seed to Series A startups, demonstrating sustained investor appetite for backing founders early.
- Public capital continues to play a key role in CEE. Backed by the European Investment Fund (EIF) and Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego (BGK), three Polish VCs announced fresh raises, spanning defence, frontier technologies, and growth-stage AI.
New VC funds from CEE
- The European Investment Fund (EIF) and Poland’s state development bank, Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego (BGK), have committed €85 million to three Polish venture capital funds:
- Expeditions received €31 million to invest in early-stage companies, with a focus on defence.
- Balnord received €24 million to back frontier and dual-use technologies, supporting early-stage companies around the Baltic Sea.
- Cogito Capital Partners, which focuses on growth-stage companies in AI, fintech, and other technology sectors, received €30 million for its second fund.
New VC funds from Europe
- Earlybird and AVP have introduced E2D, a €500 million investment vehicle. It plans to support around 20 late-stage companies developing technologies in aerospace, maritime systems, autonomous platforms, and subsurface operations.
- Mouro Capital, a London-based venture capital firm, has closed its third fund at $400 million. It will back startups focused on reshaping financial services through software, data, and infrastructure.
- Earlybird has closed its latest early-stage fund, Fund VIII, at €360 million. The fund will continue the firm's strategy of investing from pre-seed to Series A, with a focus on AI applications, foundation models, software infrastructure, and deeptech.
- London-based VC firm Seedcamp has raised $320 million across two funds: Seedcamp VII and its Select Fund. The capital will be used to back early-stage startups across Europe.
- Launched by Keen Venture Partners, the European Defence & Security Tech Fund has reached €180 million in commitments. The fund targets defence, security, and dual-use startups across NATO-aligned markets in Europe.
- Danish early-stage venture capital firm KOMPAS has made the final close of its €160 million second fund. It focused on industrial AI, robotics, cybersecurity, and advanced industrial software.
- London-based VC firm Eka Ventures has closed a $107 million Fund II to invest in pre-seed and seed-stage companies, driving “positive system change” across three core areas: life, health, and sustainability.
- German Merantix Capital has closed a €103 million fund to invest in startups developing AI solutions. The VC firm targets around 40 pre-seed and seed-stage companies across Europe.
- Norrsken Launcher has closed its oversubscribed second fund at €80 million. The fund will continue backing a small number of early-stage deeptech startups, working closely with founders to help commercialise scientific and engineering breakthroughs.
- Creator Fund has closed a $56 million fund to back scientific founders across Europe. It will invest in researchers and PhD students building deeptech startups in AI, biotech, robotics, and advanced materials.
- Cleo Ventures, a new European venture capital firm focused exclusively on artificial intelligence, has raised a €30 million pre-seed and seed fund. It will back founders building AI-native companies.
- Amsterdam-based VC firm Curiosity has reached a €17 million first close for its second fund. It will invest in early-stage AI startups across Europe, focusing on pre-seed and seed-stage vertical AI companies.
- Wave Ventures has closed its €10 million Fund III. The fund is focused on supporting early-stage startups across the Nordics, investing up to €300,000 per company.
- Arāya Ventures and Sie Ventures have reached a £7.5 million first close for the Arāya Sie Fund, a new investment vehicle dedicated to backing female founders building companies across the UK and Europe.
- Front Ventures has raised €5 million to expand its defence technology portfolio across Ukraine and Sweden. The fund will back early-stage startups developing drones, communications, software, and critical supply chain technologies.
