Eight Roads launches new fund

450 million US dollars for at least 15 start-ups in the scaling phase: this is the purpose of the new fund from London-based venture capitalist Eight Roads. Investments will only be made in Europe and Israel.

Venture capitalist Eight Roads has launched its fourth fund with a volume of 450 million US dollars. The target is Israeli and European start-ups in the scaling phase. The focus will be on the SaaS, fintech, healthcare and consumer sectors, with 15 to 20 start-ups to be supported in each of these areas. Eight Roads plans to invest between five and 50 million US dollars in each of the companies.

"Europe's (including Israel's) tech landscape is on fire. The region is building more and more companies that are successful globally," the investor writes in a statement, counting 37 unicorns on the continent. Eight Roads partner Davor Hebel explains to Techcrunch that the change in working practices during the coronavirus pandemic has had a particular impact on the HR systems market, making start-ups in this sector interesting for investment. Fintechs and the healthcare sector are also particularly in demand. In Germany, Eight Roads is invested in Thinksurance, an insurtech, and the diabetes app Oviva.

The venture capitalist, which was founded 50 years ago, raised between 100 and 375 million US dollars in its previous funds. Eight Roads' portfolio includes companies such as Cazoo, which went public in August and was valued at seven billion US dollars, as well as Spendesk and Neo4j. The Londoners invested in Alibaba back in 1999.