This Week in European Tech: Builder.ai nabs $250 million, Onfido and Multiverse acquire, Moonfire’s $115 million fund, Meta’s €1.2 billion fine, and more

This week, our research team tracked more than 80 tech funding deals worth over €883 million, and over 15 exits, M&A transactions, rumours, and related news stories across Europe.

As always, we are putting all weekly deals together for you in a list sent in our round-up newsletter (note: the full list is for paying customers only, and also comes in the form of a handy downloadable spreadsheet).

With that said, let’s get down to business with the biggest European tech news items for the past couple of days (subscribe to our free newsletter to get this round-up in your inbox).

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>> Notable and big funding rounds

London-based Builder.ai has secured $250 million in a Series D round led by Qatar Investment Authority (QIA).

According to a report first filed by Handelsblatt, Berlin-based fast grocery service, Flink has raked in €150 million from existing investors including German supermarket giant Rewe at €50 million and Doordash at €30 million.

German healthcare company Patient21 has raised €100 million in Series C funding to further develop its software platform and expand from Germany into further European markets.

The Bucharest-founded FlowX.ai that helps businesses to digitize their internal processes, has raised $35 million in the largest Series A in the history of the Romanian startup ecosystem.

Cologne’s Sastrify has raised $32 million in a Series B funding round.

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>> Noteworthy acquisitions, mergers, IPOs and SPAC deals

UK founded tech apprenticeships provider Multiverse has acquired its first company, the Danish edtech training platform Eduflow.

Onfido, a London, UK-based automated identity verification company, acquired Airside Mobile, a US-based company which specializes in private, digital identity sharing technology.

Fimatix, a provider of digital transformation solutions, acquired Semantic Evolution, a London, UK-based company which specializes in the provision of AI and machine learning powered solutions to the Financial Services sector.

Global proptech company, Equiem, has announced the acquisition of the Warsaw-based spaceOS, which offers a complete workplace experience platform.

Paynetics, a Sofia, Bulgaria-based provider of embedded finance solutions, acquired Phyre, a digital payments application (app) provider.

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>> Interesting moves from investors

Led by former Atomico co-founder Mattias Ljungman, London-based Moonfire Ventures has raised $115 million with its second fund and will continue to invest in European early-stage startups that intersect with Web3, AI and AR/VR, including fintech, future of work, gaming, and e-health.

Munich-based Alpine Space Ventures has received €60 million via the EIF, surpassing €100 million in committed capital as it rockets towards a target size of €160 million.

London-founded Anthemis Group is trying to raise $200 million for a third fund, according to an SEC filing.

InvestmentThe UK Space Agency is launching a £50 million fund to support the development of cutting-edge research and development facilities.

Heartfelt, a new early-stage firm launched by the managers of APX, a Berlin-based VC firm backed by publisher Axel Springer and carmaker Porsche, has raised €40 million of a target €80 million fund.

The University of Bradford is creating an AI hub focusing on transitioning university projects into spinouts.

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>> In other (important) news

Ireland’s data regulator slapped a record €1.2 billion fine on Meta on Monday (22 May) and ordered it to stop moving EU personal data to the United States in a landmark decision that found such data transfers illegal.

OpenAI has no plans to leave Europe, CEO Sam Altman said on Friday, reversing a threat made earlier this week to leave the region if it becomes too hard to comply with upcoming laws on artificial intelligence.

Twitter is on the verge of withdrawing from one of the Europe Union’s efforts to stamp out disinformation.

Starling Bank founder Anne Boden will step down as chief executive next month after nearly 10 years at the helm of the British fintech.

Y Combinator alum and one of fintech’s most well-known founders Tom Blomfield is returning to the renowned startup accelerator as the newest group partner. Blomfield, who has led billion-dollar companies Monzo and GoCardless, is now bringing his knowledge and expertise as both a CEO and a technical co-founder to help the next generation of startup leaders.

EU competition regulators appealed to the bloc’s highest court on Tuesday to override a lower tribunal and make Apple pay a record 13 billion euros in Irish back taxes.

Spain has advocated banning encryption for hundreds of millions of people within the European Union, according to a leaked document obtained by WIRED.

Meta has finally found a willing buyer for Giphy, the animated GIF search engine it acquired for $400 million three years ago. Shutterstock announced today that it has entered into an agreement with Meta to buy Giphy in a transaction that “consists of $53 million of net cash paid at closing”.

Klarna is on track to return to profit before the end of 2023, as the company’s first quarter results show the fintech has halved its losses.

Shares of British fintech firm Wise slipped Monday after the company said its Chief Financial Officer Matt Briers is leaving the company next year.

UK-based AI drug discovery firm Benevolent AI is cutting half of its workforce in a cost-reduction strategy that will affect 180 staff.

The London Stock Exchange could next year launch a new stock market for private companies as it explores ways to encourage liquidity in UK markets.

Online car marketplace Cazoo is looking at ways to restructure its noteholders’ debt as it continues to shore up its balance sheet following an exit from the European market.

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>> Recommended reads and listens

Food for Climate Report: 2022 was the most active year ever for European Foodtech & Agritech startups

EU officials are vowing to craft a fund that will ensure the technologies of tomorrow are made in Europe. They just don’t know where the money will come from.

Sam Altman’s big European tour

Advancing the future with ethical computer vision and human-centric AI

Europe’s quest for a sovereign cloud

UKTN Podcast: Karma Kitchen co-founder on dark kitchen misconceptions

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>> European tech startups to watch

British satellite startup Satellite Vu has raised £12.7 million.

WireMock has raised $6.5 million in seed funding for API developer productivity platform WireMock Cloud, the first API developer productivity platform.

London-based Dronamics, a freight drone airline with a European operating authorisation, announced that its flagship aircraft, the Black Swan, successfully completed its inaugural flight at Bulgaria’s Balchik airport.

This week Meatable announced it has reduced the time it takes to create cultivated pork meat to only eight days.