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ZapytajVC

ZapytajVC

By: Arek Hajduk Michał Olszewski
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About this listen

 ZapytajVC.pl czyli Arek Hajduk i Michał Olszewski kontra pełen tajemnic świat venture capital i startupów technologicznych.

Od 2012 (z krótką przerwą) pomagamy zrozumieć jak to wszystko działa!Arek Hajduk, Michał Olszewski Economics Leadership Management & Leadership Personal Finance
Episodes
  • Roadtrip: Bułgaria | Angel Angelov, Innovation Capital

    Roadtrip: Bułgaria | Angel Angelov, Innovation Capital
    Oct 22 2025
    🚀 ZapytajVC continues the “Roadtrip” series, this time visiting 🇧🇬 Bulgaria! Our guest is Angel Angelov (Managing Partner at Innovation Capital; Partner at ODC Ventures) who discusses the Bulgarian startup ecosystem, funding, and cross-border collaboration with CEE.


    • 🔍 how Bulgaria’s VC scene formed: from the JEREMIE/EIF-backed wave of 2011–2013 to today’s 15–20 active funds and a pipeline of new managers selected by the national Fund Manager of Financial Instruments in Bulgaria.
    • 🦄 success stories and trajectories: Payhawk’s rapid rise to unicorn, Shelly Group’s public‑market journey to unicorn status, Telerik’s landmark exit to Progress, SiteGround’s bootstrapped scale, and EnduroSat and Dronamics as deep‑tech standouts.
    • 💰 the outsized role of public capital (EIF, national fund-of-funds) in kickstarting VC, with €300–€500M invested to date and ~€0.5B slated for deployment over the next 3–4 years, plus how this is expected to unlock more private LPs.
    • 🏦 obstacles and opportunities: pension fund regulations, the untapped €150B retail deposit base, and how second‑tier stock market listings are bringing more retail investors into tech IPOs.
    • 🛂 startup visa: why it’s not in place yet, how BESCO pushes policy forward, and how political instability slowed otherwise near‑ready reforms.
    • 🌍 Bulgaria’s neighborhood effects: strong ties with Romania, Greece, and Turkey, and why South Balkans cooperation plus broader CEE alignment are crucial to compete with the US and China.
    • 🤝 cross‑border investing with Poland: what mandates allow today, how future funds may allocate more to CEE, and why co‑investment, media, and conferences can bridge ecosystems.
    • ⚡ ODC Ventures’ deal‑by‑deal syndicate focus: later‑stage global tech (AI, robotics, health, fintech) including access to rounds in companies like SpaceX, OpenAI, xAI, and DeliverAI.
    • 🧠 alumni effects: the “Telerik mafia” and how Payhawk’s founders came from Telerik, with new founder cohorts emerging from successful Bulgarian tech companies.
    • 📊 what’s next: enterprise software and AI‑adjacent infrastructure as leading verticals, with hardware opportunities (dual‑use and logistics) despite higher capital intensity.

    Key ecosystem players mentioned: Payhawk, Shelly Group (Allterco), Telerik (exit to Progress), SiteGround, EnduroSat, Dronamics, BESCO, EIF.

    💼 Angels' LinkedIn profile
    🌐 Innovation Capital
    🌐 ODC Ventures

    👉 Subscribe to ZapytajVC for more insights from CEE VC markets! 🇵🇱

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    🎵 Music from https://www.zapsplat.com
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    1 hr and 4 mins
  • Roadtrip: Litwa | Tomas Kemtys, Contrarian Ventures

    Roadtrip: Litwa | Tomas Kemtys, Contrarian Ventures
    Oct 3 2025
    🚀 ZapytajVC presents the latest episode of the "Roadtrip" series, this time visiting 🇱🇹 Lithuania! Our guest is Tomas Kemtys (General Partner at Contrarian Ventures, ex-Centerview Partners), who discusses:
    • 🔍 the explosive growth of the Lithuanian startup ecosystem – from emerging market to European powerhouse in just 5-6 years
    • 🦄 Lithuanian unicorns (Vinted, Nord Security/NordVPN) and their unique paths to success – one VC-backed, one bootstrapped to $1.5B+ valuatio
    • 💰 the role of public funding (Invega, EIF) in kickstarting the Baltic VC ecosystem and the transition to private capita
    • 🌍 why Lithuania's 2.5M population drives global ambition from day one – no domestic market comfort zon
    • 📈 Lithuania's fastest-growing startup ecosystem in CEE (6.8x growth in 5 years) while Estonia leads in unicorns per capita
    • 🤝 how Polish VCs (Inovo, Market One Capital, Movens) are winning deals in Lithuania and competing with top Western European funds
    • ⚡ Contrarian Ventures' climate-tech focus and why seed-stage climate founders are building the infrastructure of tomorrow
    • 🇵🇱 the "Poland problem" – why 40M people can be both blessing and curse for startup ambition
    • 💚 NEW: Contrarian's first Polish investment – sun.store (€6M seed round, €100M GMV marketplace for solar equipment)


    Key ecosystem players mentioned: Practica Capital, firstpick, ScaleWolf, Tesonet Group, Kilo Health, PVcase, Index Ventures, Accel, Warburg Pincus

    💼 Tomas' LinkedIn profile
    🌐 Contrarian Ventures
    ☀️ sun.store

    👉 Subscribe to ZapytajVC for more insights from CEE VC markets! 🇵🇱

    Did you like it? Buy us a coffee!
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    🎵 Music from https://www.zapsplat.com
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    58 mins
  • Roadtrip: Czechy | Petr Šmíd, Rockaway Ventures

    Roadtrip: Czechy | Petr Šmíd, Rockaway Ventures
    Oct 3 2025
    🚀 ZapytajVC prezentuje nowy odcinek serii „Roadtrip” – tym razem odwiedzamy 🇨🇿 Czechy! Gościem jest Petr Šmíd (partner Rockaway Ventures, ex-Google), który opowiada o:
    • 🔍 stanie czeskiego ekosystemu VC – Czechy jako najważniejszy rynek CEE (po Estonii), ale z luką inwestycyjną
    • 🦄 największych czeskich jednorożcach (Avast, Kiwi, ProductBoard, JetBrains, Rohlik) i ich globalnej ekspansji
    • 💰 wyzwaniach finansowania od seed do serii A
    • 🤝 możliwościach współpracy polsko-czeskiej w inwestycjach VC
    💼 Profil LinkedIn Petra

    👉 Subskrybuj ZapytajVC, aby nie przegapić kolejnych odcinków z innych krajów CEE! 🇵🇱

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    🚀 ZapytajVC presents the latest episode of the “Roadtrip” series, this time visiting 🇨🇿 the Czech Republic! Our guest is Petr Šmíd (Partner at Rockaway Ventures, ex-Google), who discusses:
    • 🔍 the state of the Czech VC ecosystem – a leading CEE market (after Estonia) with an investment gap
    • 🦄 top Czech unicorns (Avast, Kiwi, ProductBoard, JetBrains, Rohlik) and their global expansion
    • 💰 funding challenges from seed to Series A
    • 🤝 opportunities for Polish-Czech VC collaboration


    💼 Petr's LinkedIn profile
    👉 Subscribe to ZapytajVC for more insights from CEE VC markets! 🇵🇱

    Did you like it? Buy us a coffee!
    Join our Discord community

    🎵 Music from https://www.zapsplat.com
    Show More Show Less
    1 hr and 6 mins
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