Lithuanian venture firm Aneli Capital has launched a €35 million fund to invest in early stage start-ups in the Baltics, Poland and other parts of Central and Eastern Europe.
The fund is backed by ILTE (or Investment in the Lithuanian Economy), the country’s national development bank, which manages funds under the name Invega, among others. It isn’t clear if the fund has held a final close yet.
More than half of the fund will be invested in Lithuania, while the rest will support start-ups in Latvia, Estonia, Poland and other CEE countries, according to a statement.
“No matter the country, we are looking for truly promising founders whose start-ups are already delivering measurable growth and results,” partner Daiva Rakauskaitė said in the statement. “Start-ups seeking funding often ask for capital before demonstrating real growth, but it should be the other way around: first showing traction, then attracting investment.”
The fund is expected to focus primarily on information and communication technology companies, as well as robotics, space, energy start-ups and photonics. It plans to make 20 investments over five years, with an average investment size of €1.5 million per company.
Aneli noted it will invest in AI start-ups, but it wants to see “AI solutions that already work or are in testing mode and can show reliable results in practice.”
“We are going to look beyond hype cycles and focus on companies that build real products, attract paying customers early, and prove their economics,” Rakauskaitė said. “Our goal is to be the partner that stays for the full journey, not just the exciting part at the beginning.”
Aneli’s other partners include Sabina Sinicienė, the fund’s investment director; Nerijus Baliūnas, who leads business development and strategy; and Jacek Blonski, who leads deeptech.
Aneli is based in Vilnius, Lithuania.