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FX BANK FORECAST · COVERAGE
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Aggregated year-end forecasts, scenario shifts, and curated analyst notes from 35 institutional desks. No promotion.
FX BANK FORECAST · COVERAGE
Aggregated year-end forecasts, scenario shifts, and curated analyst notes from 35 institutional desks. No promotion.
The desk frames this commentary as indicative of the ongoing challenges faced by Nordic startups in securing investors, mirroring broader trends in venture capital. Per the full note from Nordea, only a small fraction of startups manage to attract serious interest from investors, which is a universal concern in the entrepreneurial ecosystem. This sentiment highlights the importance of networks and targeted initiatives, like Nordea’s investor speed dating, which aims to streamline connections in a historically challenging environment. Given the context of tighter funding conditions, this initiative reflects a proactive approach to nurturing the Nordic startup landscape, which could lead to more sustainable financial flows into this burgeoning sector.
The struggle for startups to find the right investors underscores a significant bottleneck in the entrepreneurial process. Joonas Tomperi emphasizes the labor-intensive nature of this pursuit, stating that the time spent on investor outreach detracts from customer focus. This is echoed by Vesa Riihimäki, who notes that investors might engage with 100 startups but only find one worth funding. This mismatch speaks to a systemic inefficiency.
The role of networks is pivotal; many startups lack access to potential investors, and initiatives like Nordea's speed dating are crucial in bridging this gap. These match-making efforts are crucial as they offer startups a concentrated channel through which they can potentially secure crucial funding, thereby facilitating growth. This is especially vital in the current environment where traditional venture capital methods may be less accessible
While the commentary celebrates the matchmaking efforts of Nordea, it implicitly rejects the alternative viewpoint that funding issues are primarily due to market conditions rather than a lack of connectivity and support systems. A focus on improving networks may provide a strategic advantage in attracting the right capital in challenging times.
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Key takeaways
Market implications
Continued focus on enhancing startup-investor matchmaking could lead to increased venture funding flows in the Nordics, particularly if initiatives demonstrate measurable success in closing funding gaps. Watch for potential shifts in venture capital flows towards Nordic startups as they gain better access to interested investors.
Risks to this view
If investor sentiment shifts due to macroeconomic factors or regulatory changes, it could reverse the progress made by initiatives like Nordea’s. A downturn in capital markets or increased competition for venture deals could hinder startups’ access to funding.
Entrepreneurship "Eight different investors wanted to meet us” 14-06-2021 “There are a lot of similarities between looking for the right romantic partner and looking for the right investor: it’s hard work!,” says entrepreneur Joonas Tomperi. But thanks to Nordea’s investor speed dating, open to startups from all over the Nordics, his long search for the right partner may soon be successful. It is a well-known story: startup meets investor, violins start playing, and the first baby-steps towards growth are taken.
But what if the pair never meet? Joonas Tomperi, CEO and co-founder of the startup “enable:Banking” knows all about the tough search for investor love. “Finding the right investor is hard. It’s very time consuming – and for every minute I spend looking for investors, I have one less to use on our customers,” says the CEO of the small fintech startup, which has five employees, but ambitions to grow. “You need to kiss a lot of frogs to find your prince” And Joonas Tomperi is not alone, says Vesa Riihimäki, Head of Startup & Growth Finland. “The startups’ networks are often extremely limited.
They simply don’t know any business angels or venture capital funds – or who to contact,” he says. For the investors it is hard work as well: “If the investors are in contact with 100 startups, they might be interested in investing in just one of them. For both investors and startups, you could say you need to kiss a lot of frogs in order to find your prince!,” Vesa Riihimäki concludes.
If the investors are in contact with 100 startups, they might be interested in investing in just one of them. For both investors and startups, you could say you need to kiss a lot of frogs in order to find your prince! Vesa Riihimäki, Head of the Finnish Startup and Growth Speed dating open to Nordic startups and investors worldwide This is where Nordea comes into the picture.
With access to startups all over the Nordics and many global investors, Nordea has created a series of online speed-dating events, where the two parties can meet each other quickly and efficiently. Before the speed-dating event, Nordea’s Startup & Growth teams in the four Nordic countries carefully handpick the startups that show the best investment potential. The investors then get to read about the selected companies, so they can choose exactly who they would like to see for a 20-minute meeting.
And it works! “At our latest event we had 200 meetings – and our most popular startup company had 18 meetings,” Vesa Riihimäki tells. What does Joonas Tomperi’s startup do? “ enable:Banking ” makes “open banking” APIs for the financial sector and connected businesses, connecting, for example, ERP systems and solutions for credit scoring, accounting, invoicing and cash forecasting to banks. APIs are programs which enable different systems to exchange information with one another.
They could, for instance, allow customers to check their account in one bank through the mobile app of another bank or another business. When Joonas Tomperi and “enable:Banking” participated for the first time, Nordea had arranged eight speed dates. “We were so surprised and happy. We’d been trying to find more investors for quite some time, and suddenly eight different investors wanted to meet us!
I had to call in my co-founder because we were so busy taking all the meetings,” Joonas tells. Joonas Tomperi is still in dialogue with four of the potential investors and hopes to close a deal within weeks. “It really is very similar to finding a romantic partner… We need to be sure. It has to be somebody who shares our values and understands our customer focus – and we’re looking for a lifetime partner, not a short-term relationship!,” he says. “The good thing about Nordea’s matchmaking is that you only get in touch with investors who are really interested in meeting YOU.
They’ve already swiped right,” he says with a laugh. Nordea’s online events attract huge investors Nordea’s highly efficient “frog-kissing factory” has been spreading investor and startup love all over the Nordics since 2018, and has grown to attract some very large, global investors. “Of the ten largest and most active global venture capital funds, seven have now attended the speed-dating events,” says Vesa Riihimäki . Are you, or do you know, a startup, business angel or venture company who could benefit from Nordea’s speed dating?
The speed-dating events are open to startups from all over the Nordics – and investors from all over the world. Write to: Teija Nousilainen, Deal Flow Manager, Startup & Growth Finland E-mail: teija.nousiainen [at] nordea.com (teija[dot]nousiainen[at]nordea[dot]com) Vesa Riihimäki, Head of Startup & Growth Finland E-mail: Vesa.Riihimaki [at] nordea.fi (Vesa[dot]Riihimaki[at]nordea[dot]fi) Mikkel Rørvig, Head of Startup & Growth Denmark E-mail: mikkel.rorvig [at] nordea.com (mikkel[dot]rorvig[at]nordea[dot]com) Håvard Lindtvedt, Head of Startup & Growth Norway E-mail: havard.lindtvedt [at] nordea.com (havard[dot]lindtvedt[at]nordea[dot]com) Oskar Kihlmark, Head of Startup & Growth Sweden E-mail: oskar.kihlmark [at] nordea.se (oskar[dot]kihlmark[at]nordea[dot]se) Entrepreneurship Business growth Fintech Share this article Share on Facebook Share on Threads Share on Linkedin 11-11-2025 Entrepreneurship How to meet us at Slush With exclusive events for investors and startup leaders, one-to-one matchmaking opportunities and expert financial guidance, we're ready to help entrepreneurs succeed at this year's leading startup event. Read more 10-11-2025 Business growth Nordea as an enabler of growth – lending to startups hits record levels The sharp rise in debt financing reflects the increased willingness of growth companies to take risks and invest in expansion into new markets.
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