UKRAINE – ff Venture Capital (ffVC), a NYC and Warsaw, Poland-based early-stage venture capital firm, has launched a US venture capital fund exclusively dedicated to Ukrainian founders and startups.
Targeting $50mm, the ff Blue & Yellow Heritage Fund has received early commitments for $30m from institutional, family offices and corporate investors. With a signed memorandum with the Ukrainian government and access to ffVC’s extensive network of Ukrainian entrepreneurs, the fund will support Ukrainian startups facing challenges from the Russian invasion, while enabling breakthrough technology from an emerging innovation hub.The Blue & Yellow Heritage Fund will invest in startups led by Ukrainian founders, startups relocated from Ukraine and startups that employ Ukrainian refugees. ffVC will prioritize providing offices and resources for Ukrainian startups relocating across Central and Eastern Europe and creating jobs for refugees, while accelerating long-term technology development in areas critical to Ukrainian development. All investments will include oversight and governance controls.Ukraine has more graduates with degrees in technology than most European countries and 240,000 citizens employed in the information technology sector. The country has a tradition of world-class innovation and investment success, including the invention of the harddrive, the software development platform (Gitlab) and messaging platform WhatsApp. Recent unicorns built by Ukrainian entrepreneurs and engineers include Affirm, Gitlab, Grammarly and People.ai. 14/09/2022
