Danish VC firm BlackWood Ventures closes €21.3 million debut Fund I to back early-stage European Founders

Jul 28, 2025 - 09:00

Copenhagen-based BlackWood Ventures, a network- and technology-driven early-stage fund focused on European Founders, announces today the final close of its debut €21.3 million fund.

Since its first close in April 2023, BlackWood has made 19 investments spanning nine countries, with a plan to build a portfolio of around 30 FinTech, CleanTech, and web 3.0 companies.

“Europe is not short on talent; it’s short on conviction capital. That’s the gap we’re here to fill,” said Bastian Larsen, Founder and CEO of BlackWood Ventures. “We built BlackWood to be truly European in scope and disciplined in approach, seeing hundreds of opportunities each month and backing Founders whose ambition and focus stand out.”

Founded in 2021, BlackWood Ventures is a network- and technology-driven early-stage VC firm with team members across Europe. The firm backs FinTech, Cleantech, and Web 3.0 Founders from pre-Seed to Seed with a “disciplined, pan-European approach“.

Investments include:

Dutch company beSirius, a B2B SaaS platform for the mining and metals industry that recently raised an up-round led by Berlin-based NAP and is already used by companies such as ArcelorMittal.
IVM Markets from London, a FinTech SaaS company transforming structured products distribution for financial institutions founded by ex-Deutsche Bank executives.
Sidekick in the UK, a wealth management platform for mass-affluent customers recently surpassing €85.3 million in assets under management.
Yonder, a UK-based rewards card company valued at over €85.3 million, named to the 2025 Future Fifty cohort, Tech Nation’s flagship programme for late-stage UK tech scaleups.
Particula from Germany, a provider of AI-driven risk intelligence for digital assets, enabling institutional adoption of tokenised finance through real-time, automated risk ratings across DeFi and TradFi.

Matthew Ford, Founder and CEO of Sidekick, added: ”BlackWood backed us early last year and has been fantastic to work with. They invest with conviction and it’s refreshing how fast and efficient they were throughout. Their FinTech-experienced team has been hands-on at every turn and supported us throughout. Whether that’s in fundraising processes, helping with sales, or general support and guidance. It’s been a great partnership!”

BlackWood’s sourcing model combines a network of +1k angel investors with systematic screening of hundreds of opportunities each month, increasingly supported by tech-enabled sourcing platforms.

Frequent co-investments with leading firms such as LocalGlobe, Y Combinator, Seedcamp, Northzone, Octopus Ventures, Firstminute Capital, RTP Global, Giant Ventures, Norrsken and others demonstrate the fund’s ability to identify and back high-quality opportunities – according to BlackWood.

“I continue to be impressed by the clarity of the strategy and intensity of execution this team has demonstrated,” said Steffen Saltofte, Limited Partner and Board Member at BlackWood, and CEO of Zentiva, a multinational pharmaceutical company with over 5,000 employees. “BlackWood has built a strong European footprint, moves quickly, and is backing companies many Nordic VCs overlook due to geographic constraints. This ambition and focused execution is exactly what we aimed for with Fund I, and I’m excited to see it continue.”

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