Page 9 - bne_Tech_01_2021

Investment
January 2021 www.intellinews.com I Page 9
Slovenia’s Eligma completes €4mn funding round
Slovenian tech start up Eligma announced it has completed a new €4mn funding round at a €50mn valuation. The financing was provided by bitcoin investor Roger Ver through bitcoin.com.
Eligma aims to make cryptocurrencies part of daily life. Before its launch, there was a high level of interest in crypto among the population in Slovenia, many of whom bought cryptocurrencies and wallets but didn’t have many opportunities
to use them due to the lack of outlets accepting crypto. Now, more than 1,000 shops and other outlets in Slovenia alone offer payment through the company’s GoCrypto payment network.
The latest funding round will support Eligma’s efforts to comply with relevant regulations.
Complying with regulations has made it possible for Eligma to connect with the largest processors in the world and, through such partnerships, offer a unique combined solution for processing any payments, Eligma said in the statement.
Sofia-based LAUNCHub Ventures holds first close of new fund on €44mn
Early stage venture capital firm LAUNCHub Ventures has held the first close of its new fund on €44mn. The Sofia-based firm aims to raise
a total of €70mn for the fund targeted at Central and Southeast Europe.
Eligma underlined that it is "at the brink of revolutionising the payment experience in offline retail, where any additional hardware will no longer be required."
"With the ability to process any kind of payment, Eligma can now also start setting up a tokenomics model that is not only connected to crypto payments, but also to various traditional payments (except cash)," the company announced.
“The new holistic technology will bring the world of payments to a whole new level, where shoppers will be able to use diverse fast payment methods, and where merchants will benefit from a smooth and effortless sales process regardless of how the customer selects to pay – by using an all-in-one solution,” Eligma said.
In September 2019, Eligma announced it received a €4mn investment from the Swiss Pangea Blockchain Fund and Bitcoin.com to finance its expansion in the global market.
LAUNCHub invests in tech startups at the seed and series A stages. As well as companies based in the CEE and SEE regions it also funds those launched by founders from the region that are based in international startup hubs.