Sofia-based venture capital firm LAUNCHub Ventures has announced the first close of its third fund, which aims to raise more than €75 million.
The fund has already secured €65 million from international financial institutions, regional entrepreneurs, family offices, and more than 10 LAUNCHub portfolio founders. These founders have successfully exited their own companies and are now backing the next generation of entrepreneurs.
“Fourteen years in, our conviction about this region gets stronger and the results we see further support our thesis. Close to 100 companies, 18 exits, and around 40% of our pre-seed and seed investments reaching Series A. Fund III lets us keep backing founders here at the point where it matters most, and what Fund II has produced tells us the approach works,” said Stanislav Sirakov, General Partner at LAUNCHub Ventures.
Founded in 2012, LAUNCHub Ventures invests in early-stage startups, mainly at the pre-Seed and Seed stages, across Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. The firm also supports founders from the region who are building companies abroad. The new fund has already invested in several startups, including Nanogram, an AI-powered social gaming platform that lets people create playable games using text prompts.
The fund has also backed Lenz, which checks factual claims made by AI-generated content, and 1Club, an AI-powered software platform for the sports and activities industry. 1Club was founded by the team behind OfficeRnD.
Along with the launch of Fund III, LAUNCHub Ventures has promoted Raya Yunakova and Petar Tsachev to General Partners. Todor Breshkov, Stanislav Sirakov, Rumen Iliev, and Irina Dimitrova remain part of the firm’s leadership team. Lyuben Belov and Stephane Gantchev will continue as venture partner and advisor, respectively.
Through its first two funds, LAUNCHub Ventures has invested in nearly 100 companies and currently manages more than €100 million. Its portfolio companies have raised more than €700 million in additional funding from global investors, including Founders Fund, Sequoia, Index Ventures, and Insight Partners.
