Spanish venture capital firm launches third fund with initial close of €85m

Seaya Ventures III will focus on Series A and B rounds, investing up to €20 million for a company throughout several rounds

Seaya Ventures, the Spanish investor backing agtech company Biome Makers and Colombia-based foodtech start-up Muy, has launched its third fund with an initial closing of €85 million. With a target size of €125 million, the fund will remain open to new investors for the next few months.

Seaya Ventures III comes to the market only two years after the final closing of the previous fund. The company said its first two funds delivered above-market returns, ranking among the top-quartile of their respective vintages.

“We are honoured to have our investment thesis validated with nearly 90% of the commitments of the first closing coming from existing limited partners (LPs) of our predecessor vehicles,” said Beatriz González, founding partner of Seaya Ventures.

Seaya aims to invest mainly in top Southern Europe tech companies, partnering with companies and contributing to their international expansion. 

The fund will continue to focus on leading Series A and B rounds, being able to invest up to €20 million for each company invested in throughout several rounds. 

Portfolio companies

California-based Biome Makers uses advanced artificial intelligence to analyse the soil’s ecosystem and provide actionable insights to farmers and food producers. The company was founded by Spanish-born Adrián Ferrero and Alberto Acedo.

Biome Makers aims at recovering microbial biodiversity in agriculture to ensure constant food supply and quality.

“Our technological platform helps farmers and agronomists to discover the whole microbial community impacting your crop. From there, we can help to determine how to improve production and maintain soil sustainability for many future harvests to come,” reads a statement on the company website.

Headquartered in Bogota, Muy is a foodtech company that leverages technology to provide lunch to the low and middle class in Latin America.

The company defines itself as a chain of homemade food restaurants for every day. Varied and appetizing food within everyone’s pocket.

Technology as a catalyst for growth

According to Seaya, the current Covid-19 crisis as a catalyst for exponential growth in technological innovation as demonstrated by the digital transformation that has taken place in just a few months and that in regular circumstances would have taken years. 

Gonzalez said Seaya’s goal is to partner with the best founders and support them to make their global vision become a reality. “Founders that are mission-driven and look for long-term sustainable growth have proven that they are more resilient and have a larger positive impact on society.”

Since 2013, Seaya has invested in 26 disruptive tech companies that have become leaders in their respective industries, including Cabify and Glovo, Spain’s first two unicorns. 

Seaya’s aggregate portfolio is currently worth more than €3 billion, after attracting more than €1.2 billion in funding from Europe, the US and Asia. 

At present, including the new funds raised, Seaya has €250 million of assets under management.