Giant Ventures, a global venture capital firm, has announced a new fund of $250 million (2.6 billion SEK), with a focus on investing in Nordic tech companies that address global challenges in climate, health, and fintech. Approximately 25% of the fund will be directed towards Nordic investments. The initiative is led by Jon Dishotsky, founder of Starcity, based in Sweden. The fund aims to support innovative startups in the region, with a particular focus on early-stage companies and those addressing climate challenges. Giant Ventures has had previous success with its funds and is backed by notable institutional investors. The initiative reflects a commitment to purpose-driven innovation and contributing to positive societal changes.
Jon Dishotsky expressed his enthusiasm for leading Giant Ventures’ venture in Sweden and the Nordics. With a vibrant startup ecosystem and a host of world-leading companies in focus areas, the initiative aligns with Giant’s strategy to back entrepreneurs driving systemic changes to tackle global challenges.
“I look forward to leading Giant Ventures’ initiative in Sweden and the Nordics. With a strong startup scene and many world-leading companies in our focus areas, it is natural to direct our investments here. Specifically, Sweden has a dynamic ecosystem of investors and tech players, which is crucial to our strategy of backing entrepreneurs aiming to drive systemic changes to address some of the greatest global societal challenges of our time,” says Jon Dishotsky, Partner at Giant Ventures.
Giant Ventures has already seen substantial success with its previous fund, doubling in value since 2019. The company holds a prominent position globally among venture capital firms, boasting a portfolio that includes Swedish Doccla, Europe’s leading virtual healthcare company, Danish Agreena, supporting farmers in transitioning to regenerative agriculture, and the American mental health app Calm. Recently, Giant Ventures has also incubated a Swedish company focusing on home electrification.
The fund has garnered support from leading institutional investors such as BMW, Henkel, RIT Capital, and the Danish Export and Investment Fund (EIFO). Individual investors include Sir Richard Branson, founders of Booking.com, Unity, as well as current and former CEOs and board members of Rolls Royce, Goldman Sachs, Intel, and BP.
Dishotsky will work closely with Madelene Larsson, an investor at Giant Ventures, who has experience from top institutions like neobank Revolut and J.P. Morgan, where she listed companies in the Nordic region.
“Our vision is to become a world leader in purpose-driven innovation. We believe that the future’s technology companies will emerge by addressing the most urgent challenges in climate change and healthcare. With Sweden’s history of exporting global technology companies and a leading role in climate technology, our ambition is to support Nordic founders working to solve these acute societal problems. Actively contributing to this development is of great value to us,” says Madelene Larsson, investor and Head of Climate & Deeptech at Giant Ventures.
