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Here's your hump day roster:

Startups: it's time to start lobbying
The Amazon aggregators compared
The deal set to have out-of-this-world consequences

\Opinion

Startups need to learn to lobby

Startups like to move fast and break things.

Except... that doesn't work quite so well when they're handling people's money, responsible for children's education or taking our lives into their (healthtech) hands.

Regulated sectors are regulated for a reason — and startups need to learn how to work in them, as the Greensill scandal and Deliveroo's doldrums have illustrated recently.

Sifted's resident columnist Nicolas Colin delves into how startups should be lobbying.

\A message from our sponsor Oracle NetSuite

Has the last year changed how businesses measure success?

Oracle NetSuite’s Brainyard Business Leader Outlook Survey 2021 has arrived, and has everything you need to know about how founder priorities and initiatives have evolved for the year ahead.

Read the report here.

\For Members Ecommerce

Amazon aggregators: the European competitors, compared

Yesterday, Berlin Brands Group raised $240m in debt from investors including Unicredit and Deutsche Bank.

The company is part of the burgeoning movement of 'Amazon aggregators' which raise large amounts of money to buy up Amazon-based brands selling everyday goods.

Big US names include Thrasio, Perch and Heyday... but who's leading in Europe?

Sifted members can find out here.

Want to read more in-depth articles like this and attend exclusive member events? Sign up to Sifted Membership to get full access.

\Deeptech

Germany's Isar signs exclusive deal with Norwegian rocket launchpad

Small rocket launchers are predicted to become a €30bn market by 2027 — and German startup Isar Aerospace wants a slice of that pie.

It's just landed an exclusive deal with a Norwegian rocket launchpad to send mini satellites into space from European soil.

Miriam Partington reports on how the deal could have out-of-this-world consequences.

\Sifted Talks Founder's toolkit

Which tools does every startup need?

The number of SaaS silver bullet solutions is dizzying — so we’re making it easy for you.

We’re gathering an expert panel to discuss which tools every founder should have in their toolkit, as well as which will remain integral to daily business operations, post-Covid.

Join us for Sifted Talks on April 29.

News that Matters

🐜 The reverse bug bite. Mega foodtech Ynsect has acquired Protifarm, a Dutch mealworm manufacturer, meaning it will soon produce 230k metric tons of insects per year. And some of them will be heading for human bellies. Sifted's Freya Pratty reports.

📱 Grover raises €60m. The Berlin-based startup, which allows users to rent electronics, raised a Series B led by circular economy-focused PE firm Circularity Capital and fintech VC Augmentum.

🎭 'Automated talent agent' Genie closed its second funding round, taking its total funding to £1.75m. It's been backed by Adelpha and sees ad-land legend Sir John Hegarty join as its chairman. Philips and Warner Music Group are amongst its clientele.

👼 Onepilot raises €2.5m. The customer support startup is backed by Global Founders Capital and Kima, plus a host of well-known angels like Roxanne Varza (head of Station F), Fredrik Hjelm (CEO of Voi) and Thomas Rebaud (CEO of Meero).

🇳🇴 Tera Ventures has closed a €43m fund. LPs in the Nordic and Baltic-focused VC include the European Investment Fund. (More info — and an edgy rooftop photoshoot — here.)

👁️‍🗨️ Verification startup Veriff's got volume. The Estonian startup has raised a $69m Series B round led by IVP and Accel, which it will use to expand its presence in the US. Customers include Blockchain.com and Mintos.

🍯 Romi Savova's buzzing. The founder of PensionBee could be worth £140m when the pension consolidator floats. Savova holds 80m shares in the company she set up in 2014 and when it IPOs on the LSE, her stake will be 36.16%.

Sifted Suggests

🐴 The fintech 'soonicorns'. Starling and Lendable recently joined Europe's herd of unicorns, but which fintechs are next? Sifted members can view the next fintechs set to make the leap here.

📅 Speaking of fintechs, how did they do in Q1? European fintechs raised a record €7.2bn in the first quarter of 2021 — almost 4x more than the previous quarter. This Twitter thread has the key details.

🏛️ When will small-ticket investors be able to back VCs? A great read from Odin looking at how VC funds are outperforming the public markets — but why folks like us can't get in on them.

🤑 What happens when you become a millionaire overnight? An anonymous contributor for NY Magazine writes about her reaction to when her company IPO-ed — an honest look at how money can change your life.

🤯 VCs have lost their wits, if not their minds, says Gil Dibner, founder of Angular Ventures in this Twitter thread. Why? He reckons it's to do with speed and strategy drift.

\Sustain

What does a chief sustainability officer actually do?

Big European startups like Tier, Voi, Delivery Hero and Depop have sustainability experts in their C-suite. But what does their day to day look like? And what skills do you need to be one?

Find out on Thursday in Sustain — Sifted’s greenest newsletter yet.

Sign up now.

Lobbying the government — from the Sifted archives

Spain is "targeting tech sector" with Riders Law, says Glovo

What is the EU's Startup Nations Standard?

Can France's quantum plan deliver? [Member]

What it takes to scale up European tech

Beware EU money in startups [Member]

New policies to help startups flood in from across Europe

Michael Stothard
Editor

Get in touch with him at michael@sifted.eu
Or find him tweeting @MStothard

Isabella Pojuner
Editorial Intern

Get in touch with her at isabella@sifted.eu
She's into climate tech and crypto.

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Sifted - How not to be like Greensill ❌

\Opinion

Startups need to learn to lobby

\A message from our sponsor Oracle NetSuite

Has the last year changed how businesses measure success?

\For Members Ecommerce

Amazon aggregators: the European competitors, compared

\Deeptech

Germany's Isar signs exclusive deal with Norwegian rocket launchpad

\Sifted Talks Founder's toolkit

Which tools does every startup need?

News that Matters

Sifted Suggests

\Sustain

What does a chief sustainability officer actually do?

Lobbying the government — from the Sifted archives

Older messages

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SoftBank makes a grocery bet 🥕

The VCs cashing in when these 6 fintechs IPO 💸

How to build a social media giant 💪

No more IVF clinics 👪

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