Deutsche Börse Venture Network is expanding its offering in Central and Eastern Europe: Bulgarian startups can now become early members of Deutsche Börse Venture Network and better position themselves towards international capital providers and stakeholders in one of Europe's leading startup networks. This is made possible by a partnership between the Bulgarian Stock Exchange (BSE) in Sofia and Deutsche Börse's pre-IPO platform.

According to data provider Dealroom, there are currently over 800 startups and scaleups in Bulgaria. With around 70 companies, Bulgaria also has the highest number of fintechs in Southeast Europe. The number of financing rounds, especially in late stages from Series C onwards, has risen sharply since the beginning of the year, already exceeding the figures of the last two years in the first quarter.

"We are continuously expanding our reach in Europe and rely on established partners to do so," says Peter Fricke, Head of Deutsche Börse Venture Network. "By cooperating with the Bulgarian Stock Exchange, we are making it easier for Bulgarian startups to access an international investor network and thus potential growth capital. The startup ecosystem in Central and Eastern Europe has developed continuously in recent years and offers a lot of potential for further growth."

"We are glad that we succeeded to create, together with the Deutsche Börse, new horizons for the Bulgarian companies to fuel their development and growth. The BSE will serve for the companies as a bridge to the network through free assessment and consultation to the potential members from our country", explains Manyu Moravenov, CEO of BSE.

With the Deutsche Börse Venture Network, Deutsche Börse is making a significant contribution to strengthening the ecosystem for growth in Germany and Europe. With a specially developed range of investor events, training sessions and networking events tailored to founders and investors, the growth network aims to improve the financing situation of young, up-and-coming companies. The network currently has over 660 members worldwide, including around 200 companies from sectors such as financial services, IT, software & data and health & life sciences. With over 460 investors from 32 countries worldwide, the Venture Network also covers all financing phases from early to later stage. These include venture capital, private equity, corporate venture capital and family offices & HNWIs.