Helsinki-based Sparkmind.vc has hit a €40m initial close for its maiden venture capital fund focused on the EdTech sector in the Nordic region.
The fund has backed by investors including buyout major KKR, Finnish Industry Investment, OP Banking Group, Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Company, the University of Jyväskylä and the City of Espoo.
Sparkmind.vc has set a €60m hard cap for the fund, which it hopes to reach by the end of the year.
The fund will be used to join Seed stage and Series B funding rounds for startups in the educational technology sector across Northern Europe.
The VC fund is targeting companies operating at education stages from early childhood and K12 to corporate and lifelong learning.
Sparkmind founder and managing partner Marko Kyyrönen said, “Measured by the total spending, education is one of the largest sectors in the world. However, the aggregate market capitalization of learning companies is relatively low. The education sector is on the verge of an upsurge in innovation and capitalization.
“These fundamentals create a unique opportunity for a specialist VC to create value during the 2020s and beyond. Our fund offers access to limitedly available learning sector for institutional investors seeking increased diversification, as evidenced by strong interest in the first close.”
The venture firm has already closed its first investment in Finland=- based career acceleration platform, Fuzu, which held a €3.4m Series A round earlier this year.
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