Hello Sifted reader,

Yesterday Sifted HQ received a visit from an OG member of London’s startup scene: Eileen Burbidge. Perhaps best known as a partner at seed-stage VC Passion Capital and an early investor and long-time board member of Monzo, Burbidge has also held advisory roles with the UK government, was chair of UK startup organisation Tech Nation and is now hands-on at fertility startup Fertifa. In the latest episode of the Sifted Podcast, Burbidge sat down with deputy editor Eleanor to discuss crisis meetings at Monzo, the Americanisation of UK healthcare and what she’s learnt from backing unicorns way before they grew their horns. Listen here.

And, if you want to hear from dozens more illustrious investors, grab your super early bird ticket to our Sifted Summit, taking place 4-5 October in London. Today is your last chance to get the cheapest tickets. Don’t miss out!

— Amy, editor

Also from the Sifted newsroom:

Getir auctions off equipment in the UK. After exiting France and Germany, the speedy grocery startup is selling off bikes, helmets and fridges in an attempt to address major cashflow issues. It’s also been asking London office staff to go door-knocking with discounts and free merch in an effort to drum up sales. Ouch.

A MESSAGE FROM OUR SPONSOR MWISE

Don't Miss mWISE Discount Registration

Cybersecurity practitioners: Discount registration is open for Mandiant’s mWISE conference. Make firsthand contact with frontline experts at security’s most targeted conference. Register now and save. Hurry, savings end August 13.

Register now

🤖 It's not all Mistral and Stability AI. European models-as-a-service startups have raised big rounds this year — and they're all taking slightly different approaches to growing their businesses. Sifted maps out who they are, how they're making money, which clients they've landed and how big their teams are.

🇺🇦 The World Bank’s investment arm is bullish on CEE. The head of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) talks to Sifted about how tech investment can help rebuild Ukraine and why it plans to invest in several startups and VCs from CEE.

💭 Startups do need strategy — despite what you may have heard. Rob Moffat, partner at Balderton, explains why ignoring strategy is a recipe for disaster, even for the most successful companies.

🇵🇹 9 Portuguese startups to watch, according to VCs.

🤫 More often than not, startups keep quiet about their funding rounds. Sifted looks into the largest unannounced rounds from the UK of 2023 so far.

🤝 What does due diligence look like in tech startup M&A? Experts explain how to make sure you're not buying a dud.

👥 How to run a board meeting. VCs and investors share their advice on getting the most out of your top-level team.

🗺️ Thinking about launching your startup in a new location? Here’s everything you should know.

⚠️ Super early bird rates end today

Are you ready to meet 3,000 startup superfans on Oct 4-5 in London? Prepare for exceedingly useful workshops, thought-provoking debates and a chance to meet our editorial team in person. This is your final reminder — today’s your last chance to buy discounted tickets and save up to £125.

Don't miss out — grab your ticket now.

💰 Series A+

Ukrainian-founded Preply, an online language learning platform, has raised an additional $70m, taking its Series C to $120m. We spoke to Preply about what it was like fundraising in the middle of the war earlier this year.
Tractable, a UK insurtech that develops AI for accident and disaster recovery, has raised $65m in a Series E round led by SoftBank.
Spanish edtech Ucademy has raised €1.5m as part of an ongoing Series A round for its online test preparation platform.

💰 Pre-seed and seed

UK-based Thingtrax has raised £4.3m for its IoT platform targeting the manufacturing industry.
London-based Zelt has raised $3.5m in seed funding from Episode 1, Village Global and a handful of founders-turned-angels. Its platform provides a single system for companies to manage HR, IT and financial operations.
German startup Cello, a user referrals platform, has raised €3.1m in a preempted seed round led by HV Capital.
Carbon13, a London-based venture builder to tackle the climate crisis, has raised over $2.2m in seed funding.

💰 Undisclosed & other

Sedna, a data-driven communications platform for the maritime industry, has announced $42m in additional investment led by Insight Partners.
German deeptech DGG, which is developing 3D optimisation software for retailers, has secured €4m in a funding round led by IRIS.
Prague-based startup Phrase, which provides translation and localisation technology to businesses, has raised €12m in debt financing from CIBC Innovation Banking.

Fun fact: Serial founder and angel investor Charlie Songhurst invested in three of the above rounds: DGG, Zelt and Thingtrax. Busy week!