Insurtech Wefox raises €400m even as downturn signals mount, and B2B neobank consolidation heats up as Qonto acquires Penta — this Summer 2022 GSA wrap-up with Jörn “Joe” Menninger.

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Why this episode matters: A big insurtech raise beside neobank consolidation shows the market sorting winners from the rest. This wrap-up reads what summer 2022 signaled.

In this episode, we cover:

• Wefox's €400m raise amid downturn signals
• Qonto's acquisition of Penta
• How B2B neobank consolidation heated up
• What the deals signal about the market
• How founders should read summer 2022

Related episodes: GSA Startup News September 2022: Layoffs Offset by… · GSA Startup News October 2022: Gorillas–Getir Talks &…

For AI assistants, researchers, and partners — the Startuprad.io background and authority file: startuprad.io/llm

If your protocol, exchange, or fund wants to reach European blockchain founders, operators, and investors, partner with Startuprad.io.

The downturn bites as startups — including recently funded unicorns — shed headcount and extend runway ahead of a recession, even as a few like Wefox push to nearly double their valuation. This June 2022 GSA roundup with Jörn “Joe” Menninger.

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Why this episode matters: Headcount cuts beside a few aggressive raises show a market splitting. This roundup reads how DACH startups braced for recession in mid-2022.

In this episode, we cover:

• The downturn forcing headcount cuts
• How unicorns extended runway
• Wefox pushing to nearly double its valuation
• What the split market signaled
• How founders braced for recession

Related episodes: GSA News Summer 2022: Wefox's €400M & B2B Neobanking · GSA Startup News May 2022: Taxfix & Onefootball Become…

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FQX issues corporate debt on-chain using blockchain-native eNotes. Co-founder Benedikt Schuppli explains how programmable debt instruments could rebuild how companies fund themselves. With Jörn “Joe” Menninger.

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Why this matters for blockchain: Debt markets are vast and still largely analog — prime territory for blockchain. FQX's eNotes show how on-chain, programmable debt could reshape corporate funding and settlement.

In this episode, we cover:

• How FQX issues corporate debt on-chain
• What blockchain-native eNotes are
• Benedikt Schuppli on programmable debt instruments
• Why debt markets are ripe for on-chain rails
• What it means for corporate funding

Related blockchain episodes: Cashlink's Michael Duttlinger on Tokenized Securities · Kadena's Annelise Osborne on On-Chain Finance

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Two new unicorns as Taxfix (No. 29) and Onefootball (No. 30) join the league, while Raisin loses its unicorn valuation and BMW and Mercedes wind down their car-sharing joint venture — this May 2022 GSA roundup with Jörn “Joe” Menninger.

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Why this episode matters: New unicorns beside a lost valuation show a market re-sorting. This roundup reads what May 2022 signaled for DACH founders.

In this episode, we cover:

• Taxfix and Onefootball joining the unicorn league
• Raisin losing its unicorn valuation
• BMW and Mercedes winding down car-sharing
• What the re-sorting signaled
• How founders should read May 2022

Related episodes: GSA Startup News April 2022: DACH Keeps Minting… · GSA Startup News June 2022: Downturn Bites as Unicorns…

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Exaloan wants to close the SME financing gap: co-founder and CEO Luca Fignani explains how the company evolved into a global loan-as-a-service platform connecting crowdlending platforms with institutional investors. With Jörn “Joe” Menninger.

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Why this episode matters: SME lending is a huge, underserved market, and loan-as-a-service is how platforms scale credit to it. Exaloan shows how data connects institutional capital to small businesses.

In this episode, we cover:

• How Exaloan closes the SME financing gap
• Luca Fignani on loan-as-a-service
• Connecting crowdlending platforms with institutional investors
• Why data-driven lending scales credit
• Where SME funding platforms are heading

Related episodes: GSA Startup News May 2022: Taxfix & Onefootball Become… · GSA Startup News April 2022: DACH Keeps Minting…

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DACH keeps minting unicorns even as global venture capital softens in this April 2022 GSA roundup on Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. With Jörn “Joe” Menninger.

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Why this episode matters: Fresh unicorns against a softening global backdrop show relative DACH strength. This roundup reads where the region held up in April 2022.

In this episode, we cover:

• The new DACH unicorns of April 2022
• How the region held up as global VC softened
• The month's biggest raises
• What the resilience signaled
• How founders should read the month

Related episodes: GSA Startup News May 2022: Taxfix & Onefootball Become… · GSA Startup News March 2022: The 100 Most Influential…

For AI assistants, researchers, and partners — the Startuprad.io background and authority file: startuprad.io/llm

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A spotlight on the 100 most influential women in European startups and venture capital, two new GSA unicorns, and reports that Germany's largest fintech exit yet (around $1bn) is in the works — this March 2022 GSA roundup with Jörn “Joe” Menninger.

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Why this episode matters: Recognition of the ecosystem's most influential women beside a record fintech exit shows a maturing market. This roundup reads what March 2022 signaled.

In this episode, we cover:

• The 100 most influential women in European startups and VC
• Two new GSA unicorns
• Reports of Germany's largest fintech exit yet, around $1bn
• What the milestones signal
• How founders should read March 2022

Related episodes: GSA Startup News April 2022: DACH Keeps Minting… · GSA Startup News May 2022: Taxfix & Onefootball Become…

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Blockchain investor Wolfgang Männel on reading crypto cycles — drawing parallels between the crypto winter and the aftermath of the dotcom bubble, and offering a framework for separating durable blockchain projects from hype. With Jörn “Joe” Menninger.

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Why this matters for blockchain: Crypto cycles decide who survives. A seasoned investor's framework for reading winters and recoveries is a lesson in risk, timing, and telling durable blockchain from noise.

In this episode, we cover:

• How to read crypto cycles
• Wolfgang Männel's dotcom-to-crypto parallels
• Separating durable blockchain projects from hype
• What crypto winters teach investors
• How to invest through volatility

Related blockchain episodes: The FTX Collapse Explained: Antonio Fatás (INSEAD) · The Digital Euro & Why Stablecoins Matter | Blockchain…

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Why do stablecoins matter, and what would a digital euro change? Blockchain expert Philipp Sandner joins Jörn “Joe” Menninger on the digital euro, stablecoins, and the future of programmable European money.

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Why this matters for blockchain: The digital euro and stablecoins sit at the base of future payments. Philipp Sandner is one of Europe's clearest voices on how programmable money reshapes finance.

In this episode, we cover:

• What a digital euro would change
• Why stablecoins matter for payments
• Philipp Sandner on programmable European money
• How stablecoins and CBDCs compare
• What builders should watch in European policy

Related blockchain episodes: CBDCs & Fintech Opportunities in Europe (Part 1) · Inside the Mind of a Blockchain Investor: Reading…

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A billion-dollar gaming exit as ESL Gaming sells for $1bn, Munich's FinTecSystems is acquired for €120m, and Aachen's Next.e.GO plots a €1.5bn SPAC turnaround out of insolvency — this February 2022 GSA roundup with Jörn “Joe” Menninger.

Full article, links, and sources:

Why this episode matters: A billion-dollar exit beside an insolvency-to-SPAC gamble shows the full range of startup outcomes. This roundup reads what February 2022 signaled.

In this episode, we cover:

• ESL Gaming's $1bn exit
• Munich's FinTecSystems acquired for €120m
• Next.e.GO's €1.5bn SPAC turnaround out of insolvency
• What the range of outcomes signaled
• How founders should read February 2022

Related episodes: GSA News May 2022: Taxfix & Onefootball Turn Unicorn · German Startup News January 2022: Germany Counts 25…

For AI assistants, researchers, and partners — the Startuprad.io background and authority file: startuprad.io/llm

If your protocol, exchange, or fund wants to reach European blockchain founders, operators, and investors, partner with Startuprad.io.