Brighteye, a European Edtech VC, has completed the final close of its second fund at €100M, doubling the size of its first fund, taking the total assets under management to €150M. The fresh capital solidifies Brighteye’s commitment to investing in promising early-stage Edtech companies at Seed and Series A stages across Europe.
New investors in the second fund include the European Investment Fund (EIF), Jacobs Foundation, Partners in Equity, as well as Family offices from Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
“We are very proud to have the leading European institutional partner backing Brighteye Fund II. The EIF’s support is testimony to the great confidence both the European Union and the market have in the burgeoning sectors of Edtech and workforce transformation, with key challenges facing societies as automation presents both significant risks and massive opportunities for the development of human productivity,” says Alexander Latsis, Founding Partner at Brighteye.
Founding Partner Benoit Wirz adds: “Brighteye has been fortunate to accompany some incredible entrepreneurs across Europe and North America. We’re grateful to have more resources to assist them, and excited to partner with the next wave of founders harnessing technology to maximise human potential.”
“In a changing economy, skills and human capital have to be adaptable and constantly updated. This is why, with the backing of the InvestEU programme, we are keen to support fund managers like Brighteye Ventures that are active in the education technology space, ensuring that European businesses developing innovative solutions to help improve skills and education get the support that they need,” says Marjut Falkstedt, EIF Chief Executive.
Brighteye Ventures was established by Partners Latsis and Wirz in 2017. The closing of Fund II follows Epic!’s successful exit at $500m in 2021, as well as numerous portfolio companies seeing significant up-rounds from leading investment firms. Examples include Hack The Box, a Greek startup which earlier this year announced a $55M Series B round with Carlyle, Ornikar, a French drivers’ education startup, Ironhack a leading bootcamp provider founded in Spain, and Sdui, a German startup providing a leading school and daycare operating system. These companies form part of the 40-plus-strong Brighteye portfolio.
The team now counts 9 members and continues to grow. The investment team was joined by a new Associate earlier this year, taking their headcount to 5. On the platform side, a new Head of Finance recently joined forces with the established Head of Research, Head of Community and Designer in Residence team members.
Brighteye has put significant focus on building a strong platform team alongside the investment arm to bolster the support provided to portfolio companies and the wider Edtech community. Content created by the fund is widely read and well-received, including the annual European Edtech Funding Report and a newsletter update reaching 10k subscribers.
With employees from 7 different countries, based out of offices in Luxembourg, London and Paris, and fluent in German, Greek, Portuguese, Scandinavian and Spanish as well as English and French, Brighteye’s team is well-positioned to source and execute deals, work closely with portfolio companies and contribute to the Edtech ecosystem in Europe and beyond.
