Europe’s top 10 corporate deals of 2022 | Popgen Tech

German software provider Celonis has secured Europe’s largest venture round of 2022, in a market where many investors have shied away from mega rounds.

Seed fundraising has become much more challenging this year, especially for companies seeking the large rounds that have become the norm in 2021.

European mega rounds—investments above €100 million—totaled €36.8 billion in 2022, according to PitchBook data, down 23.2% from the previous year. And while their share of total European deal value also fell by 5.2%, their percentage of the total deal count remained stable at 1.5% for both 2021 and 2022.

Despite adverse market conditions, Europe still saw more than a handful of sizeable deals. Together, the top 10 deals were worth around €8.8 billion and came from across the region. Germany and the UK saw the most activity, and fintech dominated, accounting for half of the top 10 rounds.

Celonis

Celonis’ Series D tops the list of this year’s biggest European VC deals. The round closed in two phases and involved a total of $1.4 billion in equity and $600 million in debt.

The Qatar Investment Authority led the second tranche, with support from investors including Activant Capital, 83North and Accel. The Series D valued Celonis at nearly $13 billion, making it Germany’s most valuable VC-backed company.

Trade Republic

Another entry from Germany, investment platform Trade Republic’s €250 million Series C expansion boosted the round to a total of around €1.1 billion – a significant step up from its €62 million Series B.

Sequoia led the first portion, while the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan led the second. The investment gave the company a new price tag of €5 billion.

North Volt

Lithium-ion battery maker Northvolt has raised $1.1 billion in financing in the form of a convertible note – short-term debt that converts into equity at a later date – as major economies push plans to increase electric car use.

Investors in the round included AMF, Baillie Gifford and Goldman Sachs Asset Management.

Checkout.com

Currently Europe’s most valuable VC-backed company, payments specialist Checkout.com saw its valuation reach $40 billion with a $1 billion Series D—a 20-fold valuation increase since its first funding round in 2019.

However, the Financial Times reported earlier this month that Checkout.com had slashed its intrinsic valuation to about $11 billion due to falling tech stocks and cooling investor sentiment.

Klarna

Perhaps the most talked-about buy-now-pay-later round of the year, Klarna’s $800 million fundraising led to an 85% drop in its valuation, which dropped to $6.7 billion.

Wider market conditions were blamed for the decline, which saw Klarna lose the title of most valuable VC-backed company in Europe. The haircut was also indicative of the challenges facing the buy now pay space later.

Sequoia, Silver Lake and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board were among investors in the round.

Scalapay

Scalapay, another buy now pay later startup, had a better year than Klarna, joining Europe’s unicorn club in February with a $497 million round led by Tencent and Willoughby Capital. The company added an additional $27 million to the round in May.

The company became Italy’s only $1 billion-plus business and has been ever since was followed by payment network provider Satispay.

Bolt

Sequoia and Fidelity Management & Research led a €628m fundraising in Uber rival Bolt at the start of the year, pushing its valuation to €7.4bn. The investment came just five months after Bolt raised €600 million at a roughly €4 billion valuation.

The funding was intended to bolster Bolt’s e-gold offering, a market that has suffered a sharp decline in investor interest amid the economic downturn.

SLING Insurance

Israel’s only entrant on the list, SLING Insurance’s roughly $665 million investment gave it a valuation of $3.6 billion in April, according to PitchBook data.

The company provides cyber insurance solutions intended to offer customized insurance policies based on an ongoing risk assessment. Its backers include Maverick Ventures Israel and PEAK6 Strategic Capital.

Sum up

While not a down round, SumUp’s €590 million round did not give the London-based company the desired valuation. The investment valued the business at €8 billion, a significant jump from its estimated price tag of €370 million in 2017, but earlier reports suggested SumUp was seeking a valuation of at least €20 billion.

Bain Capital Tech Opportunities led the round for SumUp, which provides card readers and payment services to small business owners.

Climeworks

Climate tech startups have attracted significant VC interest this year as the ongoing energy crisis spurred investment in green technologies.

Zurich-based Climeworks was one of the beneficiaries, raising $650 million in a round led by Partners Group and GIC. Founded in 2009, the company offers carbon dioxide removal through direct air capture technology.

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