Uni.Fund announces the launch of its second fund at 50M, for investments in startups and spin-offs in Greece and Europe
Athens, 04.07.2023
Uni.Fund is announcing today the first closing of Uni.Fund II at 50M euros, targeting investment in approximately 20 technology companies, startups and spin-offs, in Greece and Europe. The fund follows the strategy of Uni.Fund I, investing in pre-seed, seed and late-seed/series A stages.
Uni.Fund II investors include the Hellenic Development Bank of Investments (HDBI), the European Investment Fund (EIF) and a large number of companies and private investors, with strategic roles in the Greek entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem, including supporters of Uni.Fund I.
With the second fund, the management team of Uni.Fund continues to invest in ambitious tech founders in pre-seed, seed and late seed/early Series A stage. Beyond tech startups, Uni.Fund shows a particular interest in spin-off companies commercializing research products out of universities and research institutions. The amount of the initial investments varies between 200K and 1.5M euros, while the investment strategy also includes follow-on investments in companies that show commercial success.
Mr. Nikos Papathanasis, Alternate Minister of National Economy and Finance said: “I would especially like to congratulate the management of the Hellenic Development Bank of Investments for its participation in Uni.Fund II, as it opens a path of innovative technological investments. Making the most of the development resources of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, we invest dynamically in the development of the Greek innovation ecosystem. Through the financing of innovative startups and spin-offs we give impetus to the promising technology sector and set the foundations for the repatriation of Greek scientists who left the country during the period of the economic crisis, reversing the brain drain into a brain gain. The Government’s primary goal is to recover the Investment Grade in the next period of time. With the European resources flowing in through the National Recovery and Resilience Plan and the NSRF 2021-2027 we will achieve stable and sustainable growth in our country.”
Mr. Haris Lambropoulos, President & Mrs. Antigoni Lymberopoulou, Managing Director of EATE stated: “HDBI is the Equity Capital Platform of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan “Greece 2.0”. The signing of the contract with Uni.Fund II makes us particularly happy, as it utilizes the National Recovery and Resilience Plan development resources from the “InnovateNow” program with significant participation of private and institutional funds. At the same time, it highlights that the relevant investment programs that we designed and are implementing address the real needs of the venture capital market with complementarity and efficiency, in order to strengthen innovation and highlight Greek talent, with the aim of durable and sustainable development.”
“We continue, the same team, our effort to support innovative entrepreneurship, set the grounds for the creation of healthy companies that can become global leaders in their domain and unleash the hidden potential that exists, especially in the University and research space around Europe” Katerina Pramatari, founding partner of Uni.Fund, said.
Uni.Fund I was launched in 2018 with the support of EquiFund and private investors and has completed investments in 23 companies, which have sales in over 60 countries. The founding partners are Katerina Pramatari, Konstantinos Lafkas, Panos Lioulias, Stelios Iliakis and Sotiris Papantonopoulos-Mantopoulos. Dora Trachana and George Saperas, who both have been working since day one behind the scenes and were handling a significant part of the fund’s operations, have now been promoted to partners.
