Frumtak Ventures closes fourth fund for Icelandic investments at $87 million

Icelandic early-stage investor Frumtak Ventures has raised its fourth fund totaling $84 million.

The Frumtak IV fund was oversubscribed and will succeed 2021’s $57 million Frumtak III fund.

Frumtak Ventures’ high-conviction, focused investment philosophy is based on backing entrepreneurs using cutting-edge technology to solve tough real-world problems, and it’s not afraid to combine software and AI with deep tech and hardware components. The fund is sector agnostic and has so far made most of its investments in B2B SaaS startups at the seed or Series A stage.

Frumtak Ventures is looking to further potential for Fund IV by doubling down on opportunities at the intersection of software, AI and deep tech, in industries that build on Iceland’s historical strengths in marine tech, logistics, healthcare, travel, energy, climate and gender equality.

The company said that international attention is beginning to be focused on Icelandic companies, revitalizing the nascent innovation sector, known for its resilience. Iceland’s startup ecosystem now has the highest investment capital per capita among the Nordic countries. Foreign investment in Icelandic startups has tripled year-on-year, according to a 2023 report by the Icelandic Angel & Venture Capital Association Framvís, published in collaboration with KPMG.

The country’s vibrant technology sector is home to standout companies such as digital therapeutics pioneer Sidekick Health and pharmaceutical supply chain innovator ControlAnt, both of which were early investors from Frumtak Ventures.

Sidekick Health (its first investment was made in 2017) works with five of the largest healthcare companies in the world and has strategic partnerships with industry giants including Pfizer, Bayer and Eli Lilly. As part of its latest phase of service and market expansion, the company recently acquired Pink!, which specializes in cancer support and women’s health. Sidekick Health recently revealed that it has reached an 80% compound annual growth rate due to successful expansions, deals and partnerships.

Controlant (first investment in 2011) is currently ranked among the top 25 fastest growing companies in Europe by the Financial Times. The scaleup’s Icelandic headquarters supports a global network with offices in the US, Denmark, Poland and the Netherlands. Controlant partnered with Pfizer during the height of the COVID-19 global pandemic, playing a key role in vaccine distribution.

Frumtak Ventures’ fast-growing portfolio companies include Icelandic pioneer Treble (first investment in 2023: sound simulation and spatial audio technology), Plaio (first investment in 2021: visual planning solution for the generic pharmaceutical industry), 50skills (first investment in 2022: recruiting software and tools for onboarding, cross-boarding and offboarding), Abler (first investment in 2022: sports management technology) and Alda (first investment in 2022: workplace culture inclusion software solution).

“Frumtak Ventures was founded by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs. We are proud of our portfolio companies. Their success validates our belief that Frumtak Ventures offers ambitious founders a unique toolkit to successfully build and scale their companies,” Svanna Gunnarsdottir, managing partner at Frumtak Ventures, said in a statement.

Gunnarsdottir added, “Iceland has endured and thrived despite challenges, both man-made and natural. In response, it has learned to develop expertise in several home-grown industries and future-proof them by embracing innovation. As a sector-agnostic fund, Frumtak IV will back the next generation of stars in these sectors. I would like to thank all new and existing investors for their continued support. In 15 years, we have closed four funds and are proud to have backed several others.”
It is Iceland’s most successful company and the Frumtak Ventures team is excited to roll out Frumtak IV within the Nordic ecosystem and back the next wave of winners.”