In Q1 of 2024, €43 million flowed through the Polish VC market, representing the total capital invested by Polish and foreign funds in 30 deals. Comparing the same period in 2023, the value of investments decreased by 61%. AIN shares key points of the report on the Polish VC market by Inovo VC and PFR Ventures.
In 2023, 72% of the transactions in Poland were financed by VCs with Polish public LPs (PFR Ventures, NCBR Bridge Alfa, and BGK). It shows how important public funds still are for the Polish startup ecosystem.
General data of Polish VC market in Q1 2024:
- 30 Polish startups received funding;
- €43 million is the value of investments;
- 35 funds were involved;
- over 80% of transactions remained seed rounds, with 5 investments recorded at the A and B rounds;
- the median transaction size rose from PLN 1 million to PLN 3 million;
- 36% of the capital was provided by international funds.
The Polish startup ecosystem in Q1 2024 decreased by 76% YoY in the number of transactions
decreased by 55% YoY in capital invested (for comparison, global VC activity in value has decreased by 5% YoY according to Dealroom).
Activity of Polish funds:
In the first quarter of 2024, Polish VC funds made 10 investments in foreign startups, totaling €16 million. In recent years, the professionalization of Polish investors was observed, enabling access to a global network of contacts and participation in attractive financing rounds for foreign companies.
Two of the most significant transactions included the Saleor Commerce (PLN 32 million) and Vasa Therapeutics (PLN 24 million) rounds, both of which were seed rounds and attracted foreign investment. Furthermore, an additional five companies secured funding ranging from PLN 10 million to PLN 20 million.
Public funding in Poland:
By the end of 2023, the number of active Polish VC funds had decreased by over 80% from its peak in 2022, and most teams/GPs won’t be able to raise a new fund without the support of Polish public LPs.
Additionally, there was a decrease in the share of transactions involving solely Polish teams and an increase in the share of foreign capital, with co-investments rising from 21% to 26%. The substantial (> €60 million) private funds raised recently (OTB, Inovo, bValue) have already started to have an impact on Polish ecosystem.
I anticipate this trend to persist, with Polish teams able to offer larger investment tickets and the launch of new funds under the FENG programme. Over the long term, this is expected to systematically increase the proportion of transactions in which Polish funds play at least a partial role,
Radosław Kuchar, Investment Manager at PFR Ventures, predicts.
