Yvonne Bajela closes oversubscribed $17M debut fund for European startups
What's the deal? Yvonne Bajela has closed Evertrue CapitalDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →'s $17 million Fund I, an oversubscribed debut venture fund that will back early-stage startups across the UK and Europe. The firm has already backed seven companies and plans to invest in at least 20 over the next three years, with average cheques of about £350,000.
Who's behind it? Bajela spent more than a decade as a VC, most recently at LocalGlobeDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → and Impact X Capital Partners, where she backed now-unicorns including Wise, Marshmallow, and MoovesDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →. "After more than a decade backing founders who bet everything on their ideas, it felt like time to make a bet of my own," she said.
Who put in the money? Evertrue secured five institutional backers, including the British Business Bank and BasecampDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, the fund-of-funds of Phoenix Court. Around 80% of its limited partners are UK-based, with the rest spread across Europe, Asia, and the US. The firm was one of 10 first-time managers selected for the British Business Bank's £90 million initial deployment under its £400 million Investor Pathways initiative.
Why cap it? Bajela initially aimed to raise around $13 million but turned down additional investors rather than expand the fund. "Fund size is a strategic decision, not a measure of success in itself," she said, adding she wanted enough capital to build meaningful positions without pressure to deploy for its own sake.
Why now? Bajela said the AI boom made it the right moment, changing company economics and opening opportunities for early-stage investors. "The ability to build has been democratized," she said. "But the ability to build something enduring remains rare." She sees the UK's startup scene — with hubs like King's Cross and firms like Revolut and Synthesia — as fertile ground to back the next wave of British talent early.
What could go wrong? It remains a tough market for emerging managers.
The signal: Closing oversubscribed in a difficult fundraising climate — then capping rather than expanding — points to real demand for new managers, while anchor backing from the British Business Bank underlines how much first-time funds still lean on institutional capital to get off the ground.
Read more: TechCrunch
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