K Fund launches new €250m fund

K Fund, a Madrid-based venture capital firm, has announced the first closing of Leadwind, a new investment vehicle that will invest in early-stage firms across southern Europe and Latin America.

The new fund aims to raise €250 million, making it Southern Europe’s largest growth fund. It has €175 million in funding from Telefonica, BBVA, Go-Hub, and SATEC.

It will benefit both European corporations trying to expand into Latin America and Latin American startups looking to expand into Europe. Leadwind will write checks starting at €5 million and invest in firms valued at €40 million or more.

Apart from the scale of the investments (K Fund’s previous two investment vehicles made investments ranging from €100k to €2m), the new fund represents a shift in the firm’s focus, reflecting a wider trend in the startup sector in southern Europe.

While the first two funds of K Fund were generalist, Leadwind will focus on B2B firms with a deeptech component.