London-based Firstminute Capital has revealed the closing of its second venture fund, totaling $111 million (equivalent to £87 million). Established in 2016 by Brent Hoberman CBE – widely recognized as a co-founder of lastminute.com and MADE.com – and Spencer Crawley, previously of Goldman Sachs, this new fund follows the launch of their initial $100 million fund, bringing Firstminute’s total assets under management to $211 million for investments in early-stage companies across Europe and the United States.

The Firstminute team, comprised of 18 professionals, is strategically located in London, Stockholm, and Berlin, with plans to establish a presence in Los Angeles in the coming year.

Notably, the fund’s limited partners (LPs) now include 70 founders who have led businesses valued at over a billion dollars. Firstminute’s transparency regarding its LPs is also remarkable, as venture capital firms generally maintain confidentiality in this area. Hoberman has effectively utilized his network through the Founders Forum, an organization dedicated to supporting European tech entrepreneurs through events and initiatives.

The significant participation of numerous founders – primarily from European startups – as investors is an uncommon occurrence, particularly within the European venture capital landscape. This group encompasses 16 founders of technology companies exceeding $10 billion in valuation (“decacorns”), such as Palantir, Wayfair, Ocado, MongoDB, Zalando, Supercell, and Check Point, alongside founders from Huda Beauty, Graphcore, and Rappi, as well as board members and CEOs from prominent technology corporations.

RIT Capital Partners serves as the anchor investor for the fund, marking their first investment in a European venture capital firm. Previously, they have supported leading U.S. funds including Sequoia, Benchmark, Thrive, and Iconiq. Other institutional investors include the Chinese technology company Tencent, the FMCG conglomerate Henkel, London-based venture fund Atomico, and four multi-stage firms based in California.

The existing portfolio of Fund I consists of 56 companies that have collectively secured approximately $0.5 billion in funding.

Firstminute reports that half of its current portfolio companies are headquartered in the U.K., with the remaining companies distributed equally between continental Europe and North America. The portfolio is composed of two-thirds B2B companies and one-third B2C companies.

In a statement, Hoberman commented: “Technology in Europe is experiencing substantial growth, and we are pleased to empower a large number of experienced global entrepreneurs to share their expertise with the next generation. We currently have over 70 unicorn founders involved in this venture, with more joining as we finalize the fund’s closing. Seed venture investing is attracting increasingly high-caliber investors, which will contribute to the success of more founders.”

Crawley, co-founder and general partner of Firstminute, stated: “Our healthcare systems, workplaces, and educational institutions are facing new challenges. The service sector is undergoing a transformation. The disparity between financial markets and the real economy is widening, particularly impacting younger generations. While not a complete solution, startups and emerging technology companies play a vital role in today’s economic recovery, both in their approach and the products they develop.”

When asked about the influence of Brexit on the fund’s international expansion, Hoberman responded:

“Several investors have inquired about the potential risks of Brexit to a U.K.-based fund, and we have been able to emphasize the international scope of our strategy,” he explained. “Concerns regarding the potential negative consequences of a Brexit agreement accelerated our efforts to expand our geographical coverage.”

Hoberman was also questioned regarding the benefits of having a substantial number of founders as LPs.

“Individuals with operational experience deeply understand the challenges of the founder’s journey. They recognize that the path to success is rarely straightforward. They have firsthand experience navigating the complexities of scaling a business. They can share this valuable insight with the next generation.

“These founders possess knowledge of rapid scaling, board governance, prioritization, fundraising, international expansion, and, most importantly, the significance of talent and teams. This expertise can be crucial in determining success or failure.

“Moreover, successful founders often have extensive networks that can be beneficial for recruitment, international growth, and business development opportunities,” he added.

Firstminute also announced changes to its team. Arek Wylegalski, formerly of Index Ventures, has joined as a partner for Fund II, having previously been a venture partner with the firm during Fund I. Lina Wenner, previously with BCG, has been promoted to associate partner, and Camilla Mazzolini, Clara Lindh Bergendorff, and Sam Endacott have been promoted to principals. Min Nolan, head of Platform & Operations, and Anais Benazet, head of Community, lead the portfolio support function, while Henry Lane-Fox, Steve Crossan, and Tommy Stadlen will continue to invest as venture partners.

The following lists the founders and/or executives from the companies that have invested in Firstminute Capital funds:

Firstminute LPs – Founders of $10 billion+ companies:

Joe Lonsdale (Palantir Technologies), Robert Gentz (Zalando), Niraj Shah (Wayfair), Tim Steiner (Ocado), Marius Nacht (Check Point), Kevin Ryan (MongoDB), Ilkka Paananen (Supercell), Adyen, Autonomy, Airtel.

Firstminute LPs – Founders of $1 billion+ companies:

Sebastian Mejia (Rappi), Ross Mason (MuleSoft), Pete Flint (Trulia), Martin Migoya (Globant), Vikrant Bhargava (PartyGaming), Martin Varsavsky (Jazztel, Fon, Eolia), Fabrice Grinda (OLX), Steve Fredette (Toast), Rafi Gidron (Chromatis), Simon Nixon (Moneysupermarket), Lars Hinrichs (XING), Johan Brand (Kahoot), Huda Kattan (Huda Beauty), Tom Chapman & Ruth Chapman (Matchesfashion), Nigel Toon (Graphcore), Carl Pei (OnePlus), Hanzade Dogan (Hepsiburada), Barry Smith (Skyscanner), Sir Charles Dunstone (Carphone Warehouse), Hamish Shephard (HelloFresh), Alexander Rittweger (Payback), Marketshare, King.com, BlaBlaCar, Qunar, Net-a-Porter, Fox Kids Europe, Webhelp, Betfair, Datamonitor, Tradex Technologies, Zoopla.

Firstminute LPs – Current or former CEOs and chairs:

Eric Schmidt (former chairman and CEO, Google), Michael Lynton (chairman, Snap and Warner Music Group, former CEO and chairman, Sony), Sir Paul Ruddock (co-founder & former CEO of Lansdowne Partners, chairman Oxford University Endowment), Lord Mervyn Davies (chairman of Corsair Capital, former minister and Standard Chartered CEO & chairman), Linda Fayne Levinson (former chairwoman of Hertz), Jeremy Coller (founder, chairman and CIO Coller Capital), David Giampaolo (chairman, Gousto), Ian Gallienne (CEO, Sienna Capital), Alexander de Carvalho (co-founder & CIO of Public.io, Heineken NED), Babatunde Soyoye (co-founder and managing partner, Helios Investment Partners), Nextdoor, PicsArt, Booking.com, Nordeus, Kinnevik AB, JCDecaux Holdings.

Firstminute LPs – Institutional investors:

RIT Capital Partners, Tencent, Atomico, Henkel, Felicis Ventures, The Raine Group, LionTree Partners, Lombard Odier.