LAUNCHub lands €65M first close for CEE-focused Fund III
What's the deal? Sofia-based LAUNCHub VenturesDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → has raised €65 million in the first close of Fund III, its new pre-seed and seed vehicle, against a target of more than €75 million. Backers include the European Investment Fund, the European Bank for Reconstruction and DevelopmentDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, several family offices, and over 10 of the firm's former founders.
What's the endgame? LAUNCHub plans about 25 investments over five years, with first cheques of €300,000 to €3 million. It can lead rounds of up to €7 million and holds reserves for Series A follow-ons.
Why now? LAUNCHub closed its previous fund at €74 million in December 2021, so the new target is largely flat — even as individual cheque sizes rise. The International Finance Corporation, which backed Fund II, is weighing joining the second close.
After 14 years, the firm manages roughly €100 million and oversees about 100 companies, including Ampeco and FintechOS. Its portfolio has drawn over €700 million in follow-on funding from investors such as Founders Fund and Sequoia, with 18 exits and about 40% of pre-seed and seed bets reaching Series A.
What's the catch? General partner Stanislav Sirakov says fundraising was hard, given few large private investor groups in the region and mostly first-generation family offices. In response, LAUNCHub widened its base to include tech entrepreneurs and, more recently, pension funds and banks.
"Was it easy? No," Sirakov told Tech Funding News, "but compared to five or seven years ago, the market is now much more mature and sophisticated."
What could go wrong? Competition is intensifying as large US and European funds enter the region, compressing deal timelines from months to days. "You have to demonstrate value even before you sign your term sheet," Sirakov says. Local rival e2vcDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → announced a first close of its €100 million Fund III in January 2026.
The signal: LAUNCHub's model — backing founders early, then recruiting them as investors — is being tested at scale: two of Fund III's first three deals followed that playbook, and all three were AI companies. The remaining 22 investments will show whether the firm can grow beyond its circle of repeat founders in an increasingly crowded Central and Eastern European market.
Read more: Tech Funding News
Image credit: LAUNCHub Ventures
