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Hi Sifted reader,

Trouble is brewing at several European startups. The European Commission recently raided food delivery giants Glovo and Delivery Hero's offices over concerns around anti-competition practices, and yesterday the BBC reported on a sexual abuse accusation from a customer of massage startup Urban. Get the full stories below. Plus…

• Top 10 VCs investing in Series A UK startups
• Brunch with Delivery Hero’s former COO
• How tech friendly are the UK's potential new prime ministers?

— Sophie, writer & Tom, digital editor

Glovo leadership did not take antitrust seriously, according to leaked documents and former employees
Last week the European Commission raided the offices of Glovo to investigate whether the company has been guilty of anti-competitive behaviour. 

So what's going on?

Top Series A investors in the UK
So far this year the UK has seen more VC investment and more rounds closed than any other European country.
But which Series A VCs are contributing to that growth? 

‘There was no proof that any good tech could come out of Berlin': Brunch with Delivery Hero’s former COO
Doreen Huber is a veteran of Germany's startup scene, and saw Berlin emerge into the hub of innovation it is today during her time as Delivery Hero's chief operating officer. 

Now a VC, where does she think German tech is heading?

BBC reports new sexual assault case on massage app startup Urban

A woman told the police she was sexually assaulted by a therapist booked through Urban, a British startup offering at-home treatments from self-employed massage therapists, a BBC News investigation reported. This follows a case last year when a massage therapist from the app was jailed for five years for a separate incident.

Here's what we know so far.

Who would be the most tech-friendly new British prime minister?

As the race kicks off, we look at what the candidates have to offer to the tech world. 

Who did we score most highly?

Europe's unicorn herd keeps growing bigger, but it still isn't easy. Read Affinity's latest report to learn how top venture capital firms are using their relationships to catch more unicorns — and how they're dealing with today's market.

Get the report here.

💸 Cathay Innovation launches new €1bn fund. Based in Paris, the global VC firm's new fund is its biggest to date. It will be used to back companies working on the sustainable transformation of industries, has a particular focus on Series A and B and will cover consumer tech, enterprise software, AI, inclusive fintech, digital health, new mobility and energy tech.

💳 Klarna valuation slashed in fresh funding round. Once upon a time, the Swedish buy now, pay later giant was Europe’s most valuable fintech, priced at a whopping $45.6bn after raising a $639m round last year. Fast forward to now and that valuation has been cut to $6.7bn. It follows May's news of the company laying off 10% of its global workforce.

👨‍💼 More layoffs hit European tech. After laying off 12% of its staff in February, online events platform Hopin has eliminated a further 29% of roles — a total of 242 staff. The company cited the economic downturn as one of the reasons for the cuts. Elsewhere, healthtech app Babylon plans to cut 100 jobs as it aims to reduce costs by up to $100m during Q3 of this year. You can follow the latest European tech layoffs here.

It’s here — our definitive list of the top 100 European B2B soonicorns! From climate risk insurtech to AI defence, we’ve scoured the continent to find the startups breaking boundaries and stampeding sectors.

So which startups made the cut?

After years of growth and high investment, the fintech sector is finally feeling the weight of the economic downturn. Here's the latest from planet fintech. 

📉 H1 2022 fintech funding review

🤔 Which fintechs are likely to be acquired in the downturn?

☔ How are fintechs facing the economic downturn? (In partnership with Railsr.)

Elsewhere on Sifted...

🇺🇦 Three Ukrainian entrepreneurs have launched Vesna Capital, a VC firm with a mission to boost Ukraine’s tech scene in the long-term.

🇬🇷 You might have heard of VivaWallet, but have you heard of Skroutz? Meet the Greek tech titans that have flown under the radar.

We want to know how — or if — startups are supporting their employees' mental health through the difficult times of the past couple of years.

Let us know in this three-minute survey. It’s totally anonymous, and we’ll publish a piece featuring your responses in the coming weeks.

Sophie Zhang

Editorial Assistant

Get in touch with them at sophiezhang@sifted.eu

Tom Nugent

Digital Editor 

Get in touch with him at tomnugent@sifted.eu
Or tweeting at @TJNugent92

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