💸 BackingMinds Raises €50M to Tap into the Overlooked and Underfunded Across the EU
FemWealth Issue #89
Happy Sunday, FemWealth Friends!
In the Spotlight 💸
Founded by serial entrepreneurs Susanne Najafi and Sara Wimmercranz in 2016, Denmark-based seed-stage venture firm BackingMinds has raised €50 million for its new fund. With plans to back entrepreneurs who are often overlooked by traditional investors, the initial check sizes will range from €500,000 to €3M.
“It’s not about charity or diversity investing, it’s about driving societal change and even out injustices by making good returns. We go straight to the solution, challenging bias and put focus on blind spots by delivering returns in companies where traditional investors see nothing but risks.” - Sara Wimmercranz (via TechCrunch)
The female-led firm will look for high-potential companies EU-wide, primarily in the Nordics and outside of the major capital cities.
The firm’s portfolio already includes 13 companies, with a majority of them led by women or immigrants. Brain Stimulation, Cemvision, Serviceform, and Skrym are some of the most notable ones.
LPs include founders and executives from EQT, Nautical Capital, Spotify, King, Supercell, and the H&M family office.
Pitch here.
Read more: BackingMinds raises new €50 million fund to power-up normally overlooked entrepreneurs
FemWealth Favourites ❤️
Startups: 💸 Lumen raises $62M for its handheld weight loss hardware - Merav Mor is a co-founder and chief scientist of the Israeli company that offers a personalized health solution based on individual metabolism. Pitango Venture Capital led the series B round, with participation from Hanwha Group, Resolute Ventures, RiverPark Ventures, Unorthodox Ventures, Almeda Capital, and Disruptive VC.
💸 ResortPass, backed by Jessica Alba and Gwyneth Paltrow, lands $26M so you can take a daycation - The US-based company founded by Amanda Szabo offers access to amenities such as pools, spas, and fitness centers at high-end hotels. It currently plans its international expansion.
💸 Female-led proptech AltoVita secures $9.5M funding to redefine corporation accommodation - Founded by Vivi Cahyadi Himmel (CEO) and Karolina Saviova (COO), the London-based company has raised $9.5 million in an oversubscribed Series A investment round co-led by Switzerland-based VC Novum Capital Partners and Fifth Wall.
💸 Cameroonian crypto and savings platform Ejara raises $8M, led by Anthemis and Dragonfly - The Cameroonian fintech, co-founded and led by Nelly Chatue-Diop, offers an investment app that allows users to buy crypto and save through decentralized wallets. London-based Anthemis co-led the series A round alongside crypto-focused fund Dragonfly Capital.
💸 Kenya’s Uncover raises $1M to expand skincare product enterprise across Africa - The Kenya-based startup, co-founded by Sneha Mehta, Jade Oyateru (COO), and Catherine Lee (Advisor), aims to revolutionize the beauty sector through data-led manufacturing aligned with the needs of the modern African woman.
💸 To da moon: Emm aims to innovate on the menstrual cup - The UK-based company, founded and led by Jenny Button, has raised £891,000 round ($1.1 million) from angel groups and Innovate UK. Currently, in beta testing, the startup plans its product launch next year.
“What drives me is the firm belief that information about your body can make a life-altering difference to your health outcomes. That’s why what we’re doing at Emm is important — we’re addressing health with our sensing platform and we’re also addressing quality of life with product performance. And that combination of innovation in technology with design is magic.” - Jenny Button, founder & CEO of Emm (via TechCrunch)
👩🏻💻 Natives Rising wins backing to help Native Americans into tech and startups - The US-based nonprofit community organization is on a mission to support and grow the number of Native American women graduating college with computing degrees and provide a path towards entrepreneurship. Danielle Forward (CEO), Betsy Fore (Chief Impact Officer), and Hannah Cirelli (Chief Community Officer) are the co-founders of Natives Rising.
👩🏻💻 In 2022, female founders raked in some of Europe’s most high-profile fintech rounds - Features 12 European fintechs with women CEOs and or co-founders, including YourJuno, co-founded by sisters Margot and Alexia de Broglie; Starling Bank, founded and led by Anne Boden; and Simpler, co-founded and led by Rania Lamprou.
👩🏻⚕️ ‘Every Tragedy Should Be Turned Into A Business Opportunity,’ Says BioTech Entrepreneur - Features Dina Radenkovic, CEO and co-founder of Gameto, a biotech startup on a mission to redefine female reproductive health. The company has raised $40 million to make egg harvesting cheaper and safer by using human stem cells to mature ova in a lab.
🎯 The Art Of The Founder Exit - Michelle Cordeiro Grant, founder of Lively, and Amanda Goetz, founder of House of Wise, reflect on the process of exiting their businesses.
📣 Shout-out to Sylvia Lee, co-founder and CEO of Poom, an NYC-based bread-sharing app that brings bakers together to share homebaked goods with neighbors for free. They take food-sharing to the forefront to encourage a deeper connection between neighbors as they share resources, talent, and labor as a community. Poom is currently raising its pre-seed round.
VC: 💸 New Fare Partners is latest female-led VC to close first fund - Co-founded by Elly Truesdell and Hallie Bonnar, New Fare Partners has secured $20 million for its inaugural fund to back early-stage food and beverage businesses.
🌎 Seedstars Capital launches to support new fund managers around the world - Seedstars Capital - part of Seedstars group co-founded by Alisée de Tonnac, aims to support gender-diverse teams in emerging markets, such as Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, Central, and Eastern Europe, and Southeast Asia.
💸 Visionary VCs: Deepali Nangia talks about the importance of relationships to venture capital - Features Deepali Nangia, a Partner at Speedinvest and co-founder of Alma Ventures. She invests in female-founded companies.
📖 Book Excerpt: ‘Better Venture’ looks at how the current venture model connects to the slave trade - By Erika Brodnock, co-author of the recently published book “Better Venture”
Literature: ✍ Annie Ernaux Turns Memory Into Art - Features French writer and Nobel laureate Annie Ernaux
Media: 📕 Nobel Prize Winner Maria Ressa Is Fighting for Press Freedom - Features Nobel laureate Maria Ressa, a Philippine investigative journalist. In her new book How to Stand Up to a Dictator, she exposes the link between the rise of authoritarianism and the decline of press freedom around the world.
“People always ask, 'Why don’t you shut up?' But there’s just too much at stake. It’s about our freedom, our democracy, and anyone who is in a position to hold the line should hold the line.” - Nobel Prize-winning journalist Maria Ressa.
Politics: 🇳🇿 Experts React To Question On Prime Ministers Meeting ‘Because Of Their Age’ - Political experts reflect on a reporter’s question if New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and the Finnish PM Sanna Marin were meeting because of their similar age and gender - during a historic first visit of a Finnish Prime Minister to New Zealand.
“I wonder whether or not anyone ever asked Barack Obama and John Key if they met because they were of similar age.” - New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern
What I’m Reflecting On 💭
Women across Latin America march against violence in day of protests - Protesters demanded more action from authorities to end gender-based violence and better criminal investigations.
Young Women at Front Line of China’s Sweeping Covid Protests - Young women in Beijing and Shanghai protest against the country’s rigid Covid Zero policy despite the risk of possible consequences.
The trust crisis facing women leaders - According to new data from the Reykjavik Index for Leadership, trust in female political and business leaders across G7 nations (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK, and the US) has fallen throughout the past year.
The Pandemic Exposed the Inequality of American Motherhood
“The virus and its economic fallout affected women in the top tiers of society in very different ways than it did women at the bottom. Those without advanced degrees and high-paying jobs were pressed out of the labor force in far greater numbers, and experienced a slower recovery, than their more privileged counterparts. Similarly, a baby bump among highly educated women overshadowed a baby bust among their peers without a degree. Reducing all of these experiences to a single thread is impossible. There isn’t just one story about women during the pandemic; there are many.”
As always, thank you for reading FemWealth! 💕 Please share this issue with a friend if you think they’d enjoy reading it. Send me feedback, tips, or your 🎶 Spotify Wrapped at femwealth@substack.com.
Wish you a lovely Sunday and a great week ahead!
Anamaria
Founder & Writer of FemWealth