Venture Capital/News/ Unicorn VC launches new fund with promise to create 1,000 new startup unicorns The London-based VC is finding that rivals are starting to copy its investment strategy. By April P. Fools 1 April 2021 \Startup Life Techstars unexpectedly pulls out of Sweden mid-programme By Mimi Billing 23 March 2023 Venture Capital/News/ Unicorn VC launches new fund with promise to create 1,000 new startup unicorns The London-based VC is finding that rivals are starting to copy its investment strategy. By April P. Fools 1 April 2021 Unicorn VC, the most successful VC firm in Europe measured by the number of “unicorn” startups in its portfolio, has launched a new fund promising to create the next generation of €1bn European tech companies. The London-based firm has a unique investment philosophy, investing €1 in young companies in return for a 0.000000001% stake, instantly giving all of their investments a unicorn valuation. According to George Wilderbottom, the Unicorn VCs founder and general partner, their first fund created 500 new unicorns for €500, propelling them into the VC hall of fame alongside names like Sequoia Capital and Andreessen Horowitz. The firm is hoping that its second fund can double this number over four years. In an exclusive interview with Sifted, Wilderbottom was quick to defend his investment philosophy, which has drawn criticism by industry insiders over the years as “superficial” and “absurd”. George Wilderbottom in a hat “People can call us names all they like, but creating a unicorn for €1 is the greatest investment in the world,” says Wilderbottom. “Firstly, our startups get massive media coverage because tech journalists love writing about unicorns and they never bother checking the details of a fundraise anyway. So millions of value in marketing right away.” “Second, you know who else never check details? Other VCs. So half the time our companies ending up raising at the unicorn valuation from others because they just assume someone else is looking at the underlying numbers.” “Third, we are the top of all those silly “top VC” rankings that people do, so we get the smartest people wanting to work for us, who we can set to work on stuff that actually makes money like making leveraged bets on the bitcoin price and minting new NFTs. This makes us actually the most profitable VC in Europe.” Wilderbottom added that the only problem now was that other VCs are trying to copy this approach, investing in pointless-seeming companies at insane valuations. “We were the pioneers of this model, but competition is heating up… well I guess imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.” Related Articles Asian money is splurging into European startups By Julia Caesar Click here to read more 21 female CVC partners in Europe: listed By Tom Nugent Click here to read more Best of Ukraine: 9 startups to watch, according to international investors By Zosia Wanat Click here to read more A third of UK unicorns founded by ethnic minorities By Kai Nicol-Schwarz Click here to read more Most Read 1 \Startup Life UK government to reform ‘equity for visas’ residency application system 2 \Fintech Is Revolut really worth $33bn right now? 3 \Startup Life Techstars unexpectedly pulls out of Sweden mid-programme 4 \Deeptech The other funding gap: it’s not just unicorns that are leaving Europe 5 \Deeptech ‘There’s going to be a bloodbath’ — is generative AI a bubble?
Best of Ukraine: 9 startups to watch, according to international investors By Zosia Wanat Click here to read more