Skype co-founders Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis along with ex-Skyper Geoffrey Prentice are raising a new fund for their investment vehicle, Atomico. The plan is to raise a total of 300 million euros ($450 million), 100 million euros of which is coming from Zennstrom, Friss & Co. (which makes raising the whole amount relatively easy.) I have heard this from multiple (and reliable) sources, so I feel comfortable reporting this.
Atomico has become an aggressive investor in Europe and has backed many online video startups, such as Deca, WooMe and Seesmic. While some of their investments — like FON and Joost — are having a bit of a bumpy ride, Atomico can count the $280 million sale of Last.fm to CBS as a win.
The new fund will make them a disruptive player in the EU venture world, and their entrepreneurial record will make them an attractive option for European startups.The presence of another deep-pocketed investor combined with a limited number of quality deals in Europe is likely to boost valuations — good news for startups. Other VCs should take note.
17 comments so far
10:37 PM PT
When business is tough, turn to investing. Diversify that pot of money.
1:38 AM PT
Why not use the money to buy back Skype and then take it public?
2:13 AM PT
[...] GigaOM reports that Skype co-founders Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis, together with another ex-Skype employee, Geoffrey Prentice, are raising a big new fund which will invest in European startups through their investment group, Atomico. [...]
3:09 AM PT
This is good news for the European Start-up community.
3:38 AM PT
[...] GigaOM reports that Skype co-founders Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis, together with another ex-Skype employee, Geoffrey Prentice, are raising a big new fund which will invest in European startups through their investment group, Atomico. [...]
4:34 AM PT
[...] GigaOM reports that Skype co-founders Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis, together with another ex-Skype employee, Geoffrey Prentice, are raising a big new fund which will invest in European startups through their investment group, Atomico. [...]
4:38 AM PT
What Lars said.
9:34 AM PT
[...] The co-founders of Skype, Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis, are raising about $450 million for their London-based venture fund Atomico, according to a report from GigaOm. [...]
9:36 AM PT
[...] The co-founders of Skype, Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis, are raising about $450 million for their London-based venture fund Atomico, according to a report from GigaOm. [...]
9:48 AM PT
[...] The co-founders of Skype, Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis, are raising about $450 million for their London-based venture fund Atomico, according to a report from GigaOm. [...]
10:36 PM PT
[...] co-founders Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis, as well as former Skype veteran Geoffrey Prentice, are raising a new venture fund of as much as $450 million. GigaOm reports that they plan to raise a total of 300 million euros. [...]
7:44 AM PT
@jahangir - i’d prefer they invest in a completely opensource voip solution running it as SaaS for PSTN connectivity. Skype’s got a huge user base, most of whom are opensource junkies, yet it remains fairly closed and unstable on linux systems.
12:19 PM PT
[...] Atomico auf. Er soll mit 300 Millionen Euro ausgestattet sein, schreibt Marcel Weiss. Laut Gigaom kommen 100 Millionen Dollar des Kapitals sogar aus der eigenen Tasche von Zennström und [...]
10:07 PM PT
[...] Källa: GigaOM [...]
10:08 AM PT
[...] all the guys that went to TakeOff 2008: catch a plane do London and sell your idea for Atomico: Skype co-founders Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis along with ex-Skyper Geoffrey [...]
9:21 PM PT
[...] http://gigaom.com/2008/04/24/skype-boys-raising-a-massive-new-fund/#comment-875400all the guys that went to TakeOff 2008: catch a plane do London and sell your idea for Atomico: Skype co-founders Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis along with ex-Skyper Geoffrey […] [...]
3:08 AM PT
[...] GigaOM reports that Skype co-founders Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis, together with another ex-Skype employee, Geoffrey Prentice, are raising a big new fund which will invest in European startups through their investment group, Atomico. [...]
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