So far this year, startups in The Netherlands have raised a record €3.8bn from VC funds, more than thee €1.7bn in all of 2020.
But which are the country's most exciting startups and scaleups? Which are the ones to watch in 2021?
Our team of experts at Sifted have chosen a list of more than 100 exciting companies we think you need to know about, with an added 'Sifted take' to provide an extra layer of insight on the most interesting.
It's a mixture of the big and the small, the well known and the under the radar. But all are making waves. Keep reading below and stay informed about Europe’s new economy!
(P.S The data is from European Startups with valuation estimates from Dealroom. If there is anyone missing from this list, or anything is wrong, please let us know by email at [email protected]).
Key
Year founded
Amount raised
Last funding round
Valuation
Employees

Sifted Take
The supermarket app, which doesn't charge customers for 100% electric delivery, is close to household-name status in the Netherlands. Indeed, it was largely responsible for Amsterdam's record funding year in 2019 when it raised €250m in a round led by the Dutch bank ABN AMRO and NPM Capital.
In November 2020, Dutch supermarket chain Edeka announced its intention to double its stake in Picnic to get a better grip on its international strategy.
2015
€300m
DEBT
€800m
1000-5000
Sifted Take
The supermarket app, which doesn't charge customers for 100% electric delivery, is close to household-name status in the Netherlands. Indeed, it was largely responsible for Amsterdam's record funding year in 2019 when it raised €250m in a round led by the Dutch bank ABN AMRO and NPM Capital.
In November 2020, Dutch supermarket chain Edeka announced its intention to double its stake in Picnic to get a better grip on its international strategy.
MessageBird
Connects enterprises to global customers through SMS, Voice and Chat APIs
enterprise software / telecom
messagebird.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2011
€1,000m
SERIES C
€2.7bn
100-500
Sifted Take
Cloud communications company MessageBird wasn't always heading down the venture capital route: it was bootstrapped for six years, although now has some of the biggest names in VC, including Accel, Atomico and Y Combinator, on its cap table.
Read more: MessageBird raises $200m at unicorn valuation for fresh acquisition spree
MessageBird
Connects enterprises to global customers through SMS, Voice and Chat APIs
enterprise software / telecom
messagebird.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2011
€1,000m
SERIES C
€2.7bn
100-500
Sifted Take
Cloud communications company MessageBird wasn't always heading down the venture capital route: it was bootstrapped for six years, although now has some of the biggest names in VC, including Accel, Atomico and Y Combinator, on its cap table.
Read more: MessageBird raises $200m at unicorn valuation for fresh acquisition spree
Catawiki
Online curated marketplace
ecommerce /
catawiki.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2008
€235m
GROWTH EQUITY
€300-450m
500-1000
Sifted Take
Catawiki has digitised the auction system. FIlled with collectibles, art, jewellery and classic cars, its platform "for special objects" features 65k new items per week — with 10m users. In December 2020, it raised €150m in a round led by Permira and including former backer Accel.
2008
€235m
GROWTH EQUITY
€300-450m
500-1000
Sifted Take
Catawiki has digitised the auction system. FIlled with collectibles, art, jewellery and classic cars, its platform "for special objects" features 65k new items per week — with 10m users. In December 2020, it raised €150m in a round led by Permira and including former backer Accel.
BitFury Group
Bitcoin Blockchain infrastructure provider and transaction processing company
fintech / cryptocurrency
bitfury.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2011
€182m
SERIES C
€909m
100-500
Sifted Take
BitFury is involved in enough mining projects to class it as an established cog in the global cryptocurrency market. It makes processors and devices used for mining cryptocurrencies, and runs data centres in Canada, Norway and Iceland, among other countries. It launched an AI division in 2019 to assist its hardware and software technologies.
BitFury Group
Bitcoin Blockchain infrastructure provider and transaction processing company
fintech / cryptocurrency
bitfury.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2011
€182m
SERIES C
€909m
100-500
Sifted Take
BitFury is involved in enough mining projects to class it as an established cog in the global cryptocurrency market. It makes processors and devices used for mining cryptocurrencies, and runs data centres in Canada, Norway and Iceland, among other countries. It launched an AI division in 2019 to assist its hardware and software technologies.
Mollie
Payment methods in your website and app
fintech / payments
mollie.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2004
€849m
SERIES C
€909m
100-500
Sifted Take
Though it’s not the only payments unicorn on this list, Amsterdam's Mollie is focusing on small and medium-sized business customers.
It's also hoping to win customers from the likes of Stripe by being better tailored to the needs of European businesses, with local language customer service and payment methods.
In March 2021, it announced a new hire in Shane Happach, who joins as CEO after more than a decade at Worldpay. Happach told Sifted he has been in discussions to join Mollie since the summer of last year – roughly the same time that the company secured a €90m Series B investment.
Gaston Aussems, who had served as Mollie’s CEO since 2013, surprised observers last year by leaving the company shortly before the announcement of its Series B raise – which had conferred a ‘unicorn’ valuation on the firm.
Mollie has expanded into the UK market in recent weeks. In a crowded and heavily capitalised merchant payments market, Happach thinks his new employer’s European roots to be a key differentiator. He said that while the likes of Stripe and PayPal are trying to “cover the whole world”, Mollie is focused on hyper-localisation.
2004
€849m
SERIES C
€909m
100-500
Sifted Take
Though it’s not the only payments unicorn on this list, Amsterdam's Mollie is focusing on small and medium-sized business customers.
It's also hoping to win customers from the likes of Stripe by being better tailored to the needs of European businesses, with local language customer service and payment methods.
In March 2021, it announced a new hire in Shane Happach, who joins as CEO after more than a decade at Worldpay. Happach told Sifted he has been in discussions to join Mollie since the summer of last year – roughly the same time that the company secured a €90m Series B investment.
Gaston Aussems, who had served as Mollie’s CEO since 2013, surprised observers last year by leaving the company shortly before the announcement of its Series B raise – which had conferred a ‘unicorn’ valuation on the firm.
Mollie has expanded into the UK market in recent weeks. In a crowded and heavily capitalised merchant payments market, Happach thinks his new employer’s European roots to be a key differentiator. He said that while the likes of Stripe and PayPal are trying to “cover the whole world”, Mollie is focused on hyper-localisation.

Lumos
Clean, affordable solar power to a market of 1.3 billion potential customers who live off the electricity grid
energy / clean energy
lumos-global.comAmstelveen, Netherlands
2013
€105m
GRANT
€255-364m
100-500
Sifted Take
Based in Amstelveen but deploying decentralised solar power in Nigeria, where more than 160m people have little or no access to electricity, Lumos received $35m from the US International Development Finance Corporation in September 2020.

Lumos
Clean, affordable solar power to a market of 1.3 billion potential customers who live off the electricity grid
energy / clean energy
lumos-global.comAmstelveen, Netherlands
2013
€105m
GRANT
€255-364m
100-500
Sifted Take
Based in Amstelveen but deploying decentralised solar power in Nigeria, where more than 160m people have little or no access to electricity, Lumos received $35m from the US International Development Finance Corporation in September 2020.
Tiqets
Provides travel agencies, airlines and hotels with a platform to sell tickets
travel / travel analytics & software
tiqets.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2013
€96m
SERIES C
€218-327m
100-500
Tiqets
Provides travel agencies, airlines and hotels with a platform to sell tickets
travel / travel analytics & software
tiqets.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2013
€96m
SERIES C
€218-327m
100-500
Mosa Meat
The world’s first tissue cultured hamburger
food / innovative food
mosameat.comMaastricht, Netherlands
2016
€92m
SERIES B
€273-409m
50-100
Sifted Take
Lab-grown meats all started with Mosa Meat, which unveiled the first ever lab-grown burger in 2012. Since, they’ve brought production costs down from a whopping €250k per burger to €9 — and this is the year they’ve been waiting for. Back in 2019, they revealed that their plans were to have affordable beef products on the market by 2021.
But now they’ve got competition — including in fellow Dutch startup Meatable, and UK-based Higher Steaks. Read all about it: What’s cooking in Europe’s lab-grown meat startups?
Mosa Meat
The world’s first tissue cultured hamburger
food / innovative food
mosameat.comMaastricht, Netherlands
2016
€92m
SERIES B
€273-409m
50-100
Sifted Take
Lab-grown meats all started with Mosa Meat, which unveiled the first ever lab-grown burger in 2012. Since, they’ve brought production costs down from a whopping €250k per burger to €9 — and this is the year they’ve been waiting for. Back in 2019, they revealed that their plans were to have affordable beef products on the market by 2021.
But now they’ve got competition — including in fellow Dutch startup Meatable, and UK-based Higher Steaks. Read all about it: What’s cooking in Europe’s lab-grown meat startups?
VanMoof
Smart & electric city bikes
transportation / mobility
vanmoof.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2009
€58m
SERIES B
€145-218m
100-500
Sifted Take
The VanMoof bike is a thing of beauty. To see one is to want one. The only drawback, as far as the Sifted team are concerned, is that they cost around €3,000 at least.
Still, biking enthusiasts are seemingly willing to pay for quality and a range of gadgets that come with it.
The bike makes a range of sounds to communicate with you, from powering up to a growl if you try to move it when it’s locked. You can control power, check its charge and even the bike’s location all from your phone. It's also hard to steal, with stealth locking features and inbuilt GPS.
Two bike frames are offered – the S and the X – and these can be bought as regular bikes or as ebikes.
VanMoof (pronounced VanMoaf) is the brainchild of two Dutch brothers, Taco and Ties Carlier. The pair founded the company in 2009. Both came from outside the bike industry, which has helped them (they say) come to the world of bike design with fresh eyes. They see Tesla and BMW as competitors, not other bikes.
The 10-year-old company had had success with raising money from crowdfunding. One campaign in 2017 raised €2m in a week. In April 2019, the company raised €2.5m in just 12 hours.
At the same time, VanMoof announced it had sold 11,000 of its electric S2 and X2 city bikes. The company added that the sales –worth nearly €30m – were generated through its website and its eight standalone stores.
The broader trend is that ebike sales are booming. One million e-bikes were sold in Germany in 2018, a year-on-year increase of 36%. And in The Netherlands, e-bike sales have overtaken non-electric bike sales.
2009
€58m
SERIES B
€145-218m
100-500
Sifted Take
The VanMoof bike is a thing of beauty. To see one is to want one. The only drawback, as far as the Sifted team are concerned, is that they cost around €3,000 at least.
Still, biking enthusiasts are seemingly willing to pay for quality and a range of gadgets that come with it.
The bike makes a range of sounds to communicate with you, from powering up to a growl if you try to move it when it’s locked. You can control power, check its charge and even the bike’s location all from your phone. It's also hard to steal, with stealth locking features and inbuilt GPS.
Two bike frames are offered – the S and the X – and these can be bought as regular bikes or as ebikes.
VanMoof (pronounced VanMoaf) is the brainchild of two Dutch brothers, Taco and Ties Carlier. The pair founded the company in 2009. Both came from outside the bike industry, which has helped them (they say) come to the world of bike design with fresh eyes. They see Tesla and BMW as competitors, not other bikes.
The 10-year-old company had had success with raising money from crowdfunding. One campaign in 2017 raised €2m in a week. In April 2019, the company raised €2.5m in just 12 hours.
At the same time, VanMoof announced it had sold 11,000 of its electric S2 and X2 city bikes. The company added that the sales –worth nearly €30m – were generated through its website and its eight standalone stores.
The broader trend is that ebike sales are booming. One million e-bikes were sold in Germany in 2018, a year-on-year increase of 36%. And in The Netherlands, e-bike sales have overtaken non-electric bike sales.
WeTransfer
Cloud-based file transfer service based in Amsterdam designed to send small to large files
enterprise software /
wetransfer.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2009
€58m
SERIES B
€140-210m
100-500
Sifted Take
When WeTransfer launched in 2009 the Dutch startup did something seemingly impossible — it made file sharing cool.
The team created a striking aesthetic for its site, in part by giving away advertisement space to artists, and allowed users to send files for free without any irritating registration.
The result was that, even if the service was technically no better than rivals such as Box or Dropbox, creatives flocked to the site, which has since seen rapid growth. Today, WeTransfer has more than 50m users sending 1.5bn files every month.
In 2019 the company announced a €35m secondary funding (meaning no new money was raised by WeTransfer but existing shareholders sold) in a round led by the European growth equity firm, HPE Growth. It would not release the valuation but said it was "significantly" higher than in 2015.
This is believable as the company is not only growing but has been profitable for six years. It makes money through a premium subscription service called WeTransfer Plus and selling advertising in the form of full-screen ads called wallpapers on Wetransfer.com.
It also has other services include content-sharing app Collect (claiming 4 million monthly users), sketching tool Paper (which has had 25 million downloads) and collaborative presentation tool Paste (which claims 40,000 active teams).
WeTransfer also makes a lot of its quasi-social mission. It says it allocates up to 30% of its advertising inventory and “billions of impressions” to support and spotlight up-and-coming creatives, and causes, such as spearheading campaigns for social issues.
At a recent event hosted with Sifted and Second Home in London, Damian Bradfield, cofounder and chief creative officer of WeTransfer, said that the decision to show one big and good-looking advert rather than many banner ads went against the grain back in 2009, but has been key to the company’s success.
“This is central to our image,” said Bradfield.
WeTransfer
Cloud-based file transfer service based in Amsterdam designed to send small to large files
enterprise software /
wetransfer.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2009
€58m
SERIES B
€140-210m
100-500
Sifted Take
When WeTransfer launched in 2009 the Dutch startup did something seemingly impossible — it made file sharing cool.
The team created a striking aesthetic for its site, in part by giving away advertisement space to artists, and allowed users to send files for free without any irritating registration.
The result was that, even if the service was technically no better than rivals such as Box or Dropbox, creatives flocked to the site, which has since seen rapid growth. Today, WeTransfer has more than 50m users sending 1.5bn files every month.
In 2019 the company announced a €35m secondary funding (meaning no new money was raised by WeTransfer but existing shareholders sold) in a round led by the European growth equity firm, HPE Growth. It would not release the valuation but said it was "significantly" higher than in 2015.
This is believable as the company is not only growing but has been profitable for six years. It makes money through a premium subscription service called WeTransfer Plus and selling advertising in the form of full-screen ads called wallpapers on Wetransfer.com.
It also has other services include content-sharing app Collect (claiming 4 million monthly users), sketching tool Paper (which has had 25 million downloads) and collaborative presentation tool Paste (which claims 40,000 active teams).
WeTransfer also makes a lot of its quasi-social mission. It says it allocates up to 30% of its advertising inventory and “billions of impressions” to support and spotlight up-and-coming creatives, and causes, such as spearheading campaigns for social issues.
At a recent event hosted with Sifted and Second Home in London, Damian Bradfield, cofounder and chief creative officer of WeTransfer, said that the decision to show one big and good-looking advert rather than many banner ads went against the grain back in 2009, but has been key to the company’s success.
“This is central to our image,” said Bradfield.
Dott
Amsterdam-founded escooter startup
transportation / mobility
ridedott.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2018
€127m
SERIES B
€120-180m
100-500
Sifted Take
Although it’s falling just behind escooter startups Tier and Voi in the UK, Dott procured the coveted Paris licence last year. In these times, it's still all to play for.
Read more: Uber-backed Lime and Europe’s Dott and Tier win coveted Paris scooter licence
2018
€127m
SERIES B
€120-180m
100-500
Sifted Take
Although it’s falling just behind escooter startups Tier and Voi in the UK, Dott procured the coveted Paris licence last year. In these times, it's still all to play for.
Read more: Uber-backed Lime and Europe’s Dott and Tier win coveted Paris scooter licence
Sifted Take
It calls itself the "bank for The Free", and indeed, this is no ordinary neobank. It branched into 30 European countries without a penny of VC funds and asks its users where to invest its funds. Last year, it became one of the first digital banks to start lending for retail mortgages in Holland.
2013
€238m
SERIES A
€40-60m
100-500
Sifted Take
It calls itself the "bank for The Free", and indeed, this is no ordinary neobank. It branched into 30 European countries without a penny of VC funds and asks its users where to invest its funds. Last year, it became one of the first digital banks to start lending for retail mortgages in Holland.
EclecticIQ
Intelligence powered defense
security;enterprise software / cloud & infrastructure
eclecticiq.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2014
€41m
SERIES C
€80-120m
100-500
Sifted Take
The cyber insurance market is expected to grow by 33% annually over the next five years, and EclecticIQ is certainly one to watch.In December 2020, it raised €20m in a Series C round led by Ace Management, bringing its total to €47m — and making it one of the most funded cybersecurity scaleups in Europe. With the funds, it hopes to expand beyond the Europe and US into every other continent.
EclecticIQ
Intelligence powered defense
security;enterprise software / cloud & infrastructure
eclecticiq.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2014
€41m
SERIES C
€80-120m
100-500
Sifted Take
The cyber insurance market is expected to grow by 33% annually over the next five years, and EclecticIQ is certainly one to watch.In December 2020, it raised €20m in a Series C round led by Ace Management, bringing its total to €47m — and making it one of the most funded cybersecurity scaleups in Europe. With the funds, it hopes to expand beyond the Europe and US into every other continent.
bloomon
Flexible online subscription to fresh flowers
home living /
bloomon.nlAmsterdam, Netherlands
2014
€33m
EARLY VC
€30-45m
100-500
Sifted Take
Bloomon's been described as the "Netflix of flowers", and it's no secret that the Dutch are pretty serious about flowers. In 2017, the startup had a booming funding round that brought in €21m. After a bumper year for online everything, we should expect another spurt of growth for the startup.
2014
€33m
EARLY VC
€30-45m
100-500
Sifted Take
Bloomon's been described as the "Netflix of flowers", and it's no secret that the Dutch are pretty serious about flowers. In 2017, the startup had a booming funding round that brought in €21m. After a bumper year for online everything, we should expect another spurt of growth for the startup.
Otrium
The managed marketplace unlocking the full potential of off-price fashion
fashion /
otrium.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2015
€142m
SERIES C
€96-144m
100-500
Sifted Take
The online fashion marketplace is making a real name for itself in tackling fast fashion’s huge clothing waste problem. It helps clothing brands sell end-of-season collections otherwise unsold, which account for around 10% of seasonal production on average. So far, it’s won over 200 brands, from Reiss to Pepe Jeans — and 1m registered customers.
In May 2020, it raised €24m in a round led by Eight Roads Ventures — which it will use to fuel its international expansion, including a launch in the UK last year.
Read our coverage below:
Otrium raises €24m to expand its fashion marketplace
Welcome to the decade of purpose, says new Index Ventures partner
Otrium
The managed marketplace unlocking the full potential of off-price fashion
fashion /
otrium.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2015
€142m
SERIES C
€96-144m
100-500
Sifted Take
The online fashion marketplace is making a real name for itself in tackling fast fashion’s huge clothing waste problem. It helps clothing brands sell end-of-season collections otherwise unsold, which account for around 10% of seasonal production on average. So far, it’s won over 200 brands, from Reiss to Pepe Jeans — and 1m registered customers.
In May 2020, it raised €24m in a round led by Eight Roads Ventures — which it will use to fuel its international expansion, including a launch in the UK last year.
Read our coverage below:
Otrium raises €24m to expand its fashion marketplace
Welcome to the decade of purpose, says new Index Ventures partner

The Ocean Cleanup
Develops technologies that prevent oceanic plastic pollution
energy /
theoceancleanup.comDelft, Netherlands
2013
€32m
EARLY VC
€115-172m
100-500

The Ocean Cleanup
Develops technologies that prevent oceanic plastic pollution
energy /
theoceancleanup.comDelft, Netherlands
2013
€32m
EARLY VC
€115-172m
100-500
five°degrees
Leading bank software provider
enterprise software / fintech
fivedegrees.nlAmsterdam, Netherlands
2009
€32m
LATE VC
€88-132m
50-100
Sifted Take
After raising €22m in capital in its December 2020 round, led by Velocity Capital, the banking platform is said to be in discussion with several launch customers. It currently serves over 20 banks, from ABN Amro to TD Bank.
five°degrees
Leading bank software provider
enterprise software / fintech
fivedegrees.nlAmsterdam, Netherlands
2009
€32m
LATE VC
€88-132m
50-100
Sifted Take
After raising €22m in capital in its December 2020 round, led by Velocity Capital, the banking platform is said to be in discussion with several launch customers. It currently serves over 20 banks, from ABN Amro to TD Bank.
Framer
Screen design and interactive prototyping tool
enterprise software /
framer.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2013
€30m
SERIES B
€87-131m
100-500
Sifted Take
Founded by ex-Facebook employees in 2014, Framer allows teams to prototype the entire digital product line — and it's being used by Twitter, Dropbox, Snap and of course, Facebook. Founders Koen Bok and Jorn van Dijk also cofounded Sofa, which they sold to Facebook.
Framer
Screen design and interactive prototyping tool
enterprise software /
framer.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2013
€30m
SERIES B
€87-131m
100-500
Sifted Take
Founded by ex-Facebook employees in 2014, Framer allows teams to prototype the entire digital product line — and it's being used by Twitter, Dropbox, Snap and of course, Facebook. Founders Koen Bok and Jorn van Dijk also cofounded Sofa, which they sold to Facebook.

BUX
Stock trading app
fintech / investing;financial management solutions
getbux.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2014
€100m
LATE VC
€76m
100-500
Sifted Take
BUX is the largest neobroker in all of Europe — a milestone it reached in July 2020 when it reached 300k users after launching the app in Belgium and France.
It has two core products: BUX Zero for stocks and ETFs, and BUX Crypto for cryptocurrency trading. In 2020, its user base grew to 350k. It’s certainly benefited from the recent crypto boom, with a 50% increase in new users since December 1 2020, and a 500% increase in average daily trades during the same period. BUX Zero is available in the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, France and Belgium and BUX Crypto is available in another four European countries.
Its latest funding round was in 2019, when it raised €11.4m from firms including Velocity and Koltzbrinck Ventures. In total, it’s raised €35m at a valuation of €76m post money.

BUX
Stock trading app
fintech / investing;financial management solutions
getbux.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2014
€100m
LATE VC
€76m
100-500
Sifted Take
BUX is the largest neobroker in all of Europe — a milestone it reached in July 2020 when it reached 300k users after launching the app in Belgium and France.
It has two core products: BUX Zero for stocks and ETFs, and BUX Crypto for cryptocurrency trading. In 2020, its user base grew to 350k. It’s certainly benefited from the recent crypto boom, with a 50% increase in new users since December 1 2020, and a 500% increase in average daily trades during the same period. BUX Zero is available in the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, France and Belgium and BUX Crypto is available in another four European countries.
Its latest funding round was in 2019, when it raised €11.4m from firms including Velocity and Koltzbrinck Ventures. In total, it’s raised €35m at a valuation of €76m post money.

Roamler
Improving business efficiency and sustainability through Mobile Crowdsourcing
enterprise software /
roamler.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2011
€26m
SERIES B
€80-120m
100-500

Roamler
Improving business efficiency and sustainability through Mobile Crowdsourcing
enterprise software /
roamler.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2011
€26m
SERIES B
€80-120m
100-500
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