Looks like the technology scene in Europe is getting another backer as the prominent US VC, Greylock Partners announced a $160 Million technology fund. The funds are poised to be used for Internet technology companies in the European region as well as in Israel. The firm has been pretty a notable mention with stakes in leading internet brands like Facebook, LinkedIn and Groupon.
The firm has been operational since 2001 and is therefore one of the oldest ones in the category and functions in multiple facets. The three major being the Greylock Discovery that invests in seed stage companies, Greylock XIII for firms in early stage as well as late stage companies with its Greylock Growth Program. These are all US centric and the recent tech fund will be Fund II following the earlier one that started investing in Israel in 2006 and Europe in 2008.
It is most definitely a welcome move since more startups continue to surface in the mentioned regions and there is always a dire need to find funding, even for some competitive new ideas. For example Israel hasn’t seen a very positive last year in terms of VC investment and funding, where it actually declined. The reason being not many firms registered a phenomenal success. The new series of funding in both regions, especially Europe will significantly help push more ideas into practicality.
The latest fund will be managed by Laurel Bowden, covering both early and late stage investments. Bowden brings her bit of experience as an investor, being a partner with Greylock since 2008 and with notable investments in Wonga, Just Eat to name a couple.
