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Hi Sifted Reader,

Turkey's startup ecosystem is having a smashing year, thanks to mammoth funding rounds for startups like Trendyol ($1.5bn) and Getir ($550m).

But it's got stiff competition from France, which last week announced a record-breaking amount of startup funding.

Read on to understand what's behind this investing craze, and also peek inside Berlin's new angel syndicate, launched by three Spotify alumni.

\Venture Capital

Spotify alumni launch new angel syndicate

Berlin-based Spoti Angels, set up by three former Spotify-ers — Katia Yakovleva, John Bonten and Axel Bard Bringéus — will invest between €25k to €150k in European pre-seed and seed stage startups in consumer tech, the creator economy and the future of work.

But it's not just cash that the trio want to give founders — they also want to bring operator experience to the cap table.

Miriam Partington finds out more.

\A message from our sponsor Fintech Innovation Lab

Get your B2B fintech noticed by the right people!

Accenture’s FinTech Innovation Lab London can help turbo charge your growth by connecting you to the right people at over 40 financial institutions — alumni have quoted “8x growth in 3 months!”

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\France

France sees biggest ever week for startup funding

Last week, nine-figure funding rounds just kept on rolling in for French startups. €580m for blockchain-based fantasy football platform Sorare, €473m for marketplace platform Mirakl, €100m for food ordering app Sunday and €178m for fashion resale platform Vestiaire Collective — in just five days.

What the blazes is going on?

Chris O'Brien reports.

\For Members Venture Capital

Turkish tech investment surges 10x, driven by megarounds

Over in the Mediterranean, Turkish startups have raised a whopping €2.6bn in startup investment this year so far, according to Dealroom, up from just €250m in 2020.

A large chunk of this is due to ecommerce platform Trendyol's mammoth $1.5bn funding round in August and on-demand grocery delivery startup Getir's $555m Series D funding round in June.

The investment has been driven by interest from international investors, many of whom are investing in Turkey for the first time.

Get their insights on why they're hooked on Turkey.

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\Opinion

What managing a $2bn hedge fund taught me about running a fintech

Stephen Holliday thought he knew a thing or two about risk from managing $2bn hedge fund GLG Partners... until he started his fintech company Level.

Fintechs, he's learned, have a completely different approach to considering risk.

Here's why.

\Sponsored by Pollen8

4 ways to overcome the journey to carbon neutrality

By now, most would have heard of the environmentalists' dream of net zero — that by 2050 the amount of greenhouse gas emissions on Earth balances the amount removed from the atmosphere.

But companies face big challenges moving towards net zero — from identifying impact to mobilising staff. So, how do businesses face these challenges head on?

Read four golden tips here.

\Sifted Jobs

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Operations: We're looking for an experienced talent manager who's committed to diversity and inclusion and can help us continuously raise the bar on our hiring processes.
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See all our openings here.

Events

Using embedded finance to diversify your revenue and win new customers | Online | September 30
Hear from the likes of Mirakl chief product officer Isabelle Bénard, Spryker cofounder and co-CEO Alex Graf and OpenPayd chief executive Iana Dimitrova in our next Sifted Talks.

Construction: built to last? | Online | October 14
Construction accounts for 9% of the EU’s GDP, but it’s also one of the least digitised industries. Join this Sifted Talks to hear from the likes of Tara Mirkovic, seed programme associate at Leonard, and Material Mapper CEO Ieva Sibilla Strupule, on how startups can help turn things around.

Sifted Members

Flying, morphing and sun-powered — really futuristic cars are coming

Nordic startups to watch, according to top Nordic founders

Six startup ideas — from Germany’s top VCs

Are carbon accounting businesses any good at getting your business to net zero?

Wonga’s Errol Damelin scores 9900% return on angel investment in Cazoo & Wise

Amy Lewin
Deputy Editor

Get in touch with her at amy@sifted.eu
Or tweeting @amyrlewin

Connor Bilboe
Editorial Assistant

Get in touch with him at connor@sifted.eu
He likes sustainability stories.

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Axel Bard Bringeus FinTech Innovation Lab London Hi Sifted Reader new angel syndicate Berlinbased Spoti Angels three former Spotifyers mammoth funding rounds seed stage startups three Spotify alumni

Sifted - French funding goes bonkers 🤪

\Venture Capital

Spotify alumni launch new angel syndicate

\A message from our sponsor Fintech Innovation Lab

Get your B2B fintech noticed by the right people!

\France

France sees biggest ever week for startup funding

\For Members Venture Capital

Turkish tech investment surges 10x, driven by megarounds

\Opinion

What managing a $2bn hedge fund taught me about running a fintech

\Sponsored by Pollen8

4 ways to overcome the journey to carbon neutrality

\Sifted Jobs

We're growing our team... a lot!

Events

Sifted Members

Key phrases

Older messages

What Improbable did next 👀

Europe's biggest ever Series B 😅

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