Prague-based Rockaway Ventures, the funding fund of Rockaway Capital, has introduced the ultimate shut of its second fund Rockaway Ventures II, elevating €55 million to help early-stage startups in Central and Jap Europe (CEE) and different rising markets.
The fund will concentrate on early-stage investments, particularly late-Seed and Collection A funding rounds, specializing in sectors comparable to vitality, protection, and dual-use applied sciences. Sooner or later, the fund hopes to again startups all through their complete development journey, from pre-Seed to later-stage funding.
“We’re not simply capital. We’re entrepreneurs ourselves – we’ve constructed firms, and we perceive what’s across the nook. Founders working with us obtain hands-on help in areas like worldwide growth and scaling,” shared Petr Šmíd, Normal Companion at Rockaway Ventures.
Based in 2014, Rockaway Ventures has been investing in areas the place the Rockaway Capital group has experience, primarily in retail and e-commerce, journey & hospitality, digital logistics, digital media, cybersecurity, defence, CleanTech, and PropTech.
They notably backed Czech success tales Productboard and Storyous.
Launched in 2022, the present fund attracts round 25% of its capital from Rockaway Capital (its guardian firm), and the rest channeled by non-public buyers – most of that are primarily based in Czechia.
The fund has backed 11 firms up to now, and over the subsequent three years they plan to considerably develop their portfolio by dedicating 60% of their investments to firms in CEE – with the remaining 40% concentrating on Western Europe and diaspora-led startups from Czechia.
“We’re at present seeing quite a few funding alternatives in sectors considerably formed by world tendencies and geopolitical developments. We’re significantly all in favour of founders throughout Europe and the USA who’re dedicated to driving development and advancing their companies by transformative applied sciences,” added Dušan Zábrodský, Normal Companion at Rockaway Ventures.
Notable investments embody Apaleo, a German cloud-native lodge administration platform utilized by purchasers like CitizenM and Limehome in over 15 international locations; CulturePulse, a US-Slovak startup making use of AI for behavioural modelling and threat prediction; and Gjirafa, an Albanian e-commerce and media platform that has secured €7.7 million from Rockaway Ventures throughout two funding rounds.
In accordance with Rockaway, the previous few years have been tough for enterprise capital, however there seems to be a renewed sense of optimism within the tech sector particularly.
“The restoration started in 2024 and is constant this 12 months. One key driver is transformative know-how, significantly AI. Just a few years in the past, many buyers didn’t absolutely grasp its potential. Right now, we are able to clearly show its sector-specific influence – and that’s altering the sport,” stated Šmíd.
