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NOVEMBER 2, 2022

Hello Sifted reader,

If you're at Web Summit this week like everyone else, seek out our reporters Amy O'Brien and Tim Smith among the masses — we've also put a handy guide together to help you get through the monster event relatively unscathed. 

Germany is front and centre of news today. Berlin-based flying taxi startup Volocopter raised $182m in a follow-on from its Series E — making it now the largest deeptech round in Germany in 2022, and the fourth largest in Europe. Elsewhere, healthtech Kry is pulling out of the country, after announcing earlier this week that it's laying off another 10% of its staff.

And in response to startups falling on hard times recently, a group of well-known founders in Germany have signed an open letter to their government calling for measures to support the country's startup scene and save it from succumbing to the downturn. 

From the Sifted newsroom:

• Monzo staff launch unionisation push
• The reality of the climate-fintech mashup

• UK Environment Agency sends pension funds into climate VC

• Could robots fix the energy crisis? 

✊ Monzo workers intend to unionise. Employees at the UK-based neobank will ask the company to formally recognise their union, which will be a branch of United Tech and Allied Workers, a tech workers' organisation. They need that recognition before they can force management to consult the union during things like pay and redundancy negotiations. 

A MESSAGE FROM OUR SPONSOR TRUELAYER

62% of people are planning to cut back on their subscriptions in the next six months, as the cost of living continues to rise — but could VRPs be the answer to saving your customers? Find out in our latest mythbusting video, in partnership with TrueLayer.

🌳 Pensions for the planet. Some of the UK Environment Agency's £4.5bn pension fund is going to World Fund, a climate-focused VC which is aiming to raise €350m to back European startups. It's rare for European pension funds to direct money into VCs, but the pressure to support climate solutions and diversify stagnant portfolios is increasing interest. 

😇 How to work with angels. Angel investors can bring a lot of value to a startup — not just in terms of cash, but also through specialist advice and expertise. Miruna-Ioana Girtu, a partner at SyndicateRoom who has worked with more than 100 angels, dishes out some top tips for founders on how to attract the right investor and strike the perfect deal. 

🤖 Could robots be the answer to soaring energy costs? Despite the downturn, Europe's robotics industry is continuing to attract hefty amounts of cash. Companies looking for ways to cut costs and fill gaps left by in-demand highly skilled workers are driving up the demand for automation — and investors have quickly clicked on. 

🤭 The reality of climate fintechs. The new hybrid tech mashup has grown in popularity, with companies at the intersection of finance, climate and tech raising $1.8bn globally in the first six months of 2022. That's 1.5x the amount raised in the whole of 2021. Some investors may be on board — but not everyone (*cough* climate VCs) is convinced. 

💰 All of Europe's first-time VC funds. We've updated our list of every new VC firm in Europe that's raised its first fund this year. New entries include Britain's biggest ever dedicated pre-seed fund, a €100m pot just for industrial-grade 3D printing startups and a VC that automatically invests in startups who hit certain benchmarks — plus plenty more. You can also let us know if we've missed any by emailing Amy.

🚁 Volocopter bags $182m. The German flying taxi startup brought in the money as a follow-on to its $170m Series E, which it raised earlier this year. It makes it one of the biggest deeptech rounds in Europe this year, and the company will use the cash to get full aircraft certification from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and launch the company’s first commercial routes.

🏥 Kry waves Germany goodbye. The digital health provider — known as Livi in the UK and France — is departing Deutschland this month. That's after it announced earlier this week that it's laying off another 10% of its staff — a move that will affect around 300 people.

We're opening up some exciting new roles in the Sifted team:

Senior finance reporter: remote, editorial team

Commissioning editor: remote, editorial team

French tech reporter: France, preferable Paris, editorial team

Growth marketing manager: London/semi-remote, marketing team

Office manager: London, in-office, operations team

💰 Put your money where your future is. Three Nordic founders explain why they pursued purpose with their scaleups — and how that focus on impact turned into profit. (Sponsored by Norselab.)

🔐 How to crack compliance. In our latest Sifted Talks, experts discussed a major pain point for founders: compliance. From managing the security challenges of expansion to ensuring product safety, here are the highlights. (In partnership with Vanta.)

🤝 Landing late-stage investment. When you get to later-stage funding, it can be difficult to drum up the same level of VC interest as earlier on in the company's journey. So, how do post-Series B startups keep the money coming in? (Sponsored by Teachers' Venture Growth.)

Sadia Nowshin

Editorial Assistant

Get in touch with her at

sadia@sifted.eu

She tweets from 

@sadianowshin_

Tom Nugent

Digital Editor

Get in touch with him at

tom@sifted.eu

He tweets from

@TJNugent92

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