Onodrim Raises $300 Million at $1.3 Billion Valuation

The round was led by Lux Capital and included new and existing investors, among them U.S. venture-capital firms General Catalyst and 137 Ventures, and Europe-focused Lakestar. Onodrim said it will target established, dual-use companies in critical industries that address bottlenecks for Europe’s defense industry.

The financing follows a $45 million seed round announced earlier this year. Onodrim said that funding was intended to expand its technology for manufacturing, multidomain sensing and networked systems for security purposes. Cofounder and Chief Executive Aistis Simaitis and cofounder Alexander Blessing are former employees of data-software group Palantir Technologies.

European defense startups have attracted more investment as governments increase military budgets amid heightened tensions with Russia and calls from Washington for Europe to contribute more to NATO. Military spending by European Union states rose 11% last year, according to EU figures. Prague-based arms maker CSG raised 3.8 billion euros ($4.23 billion) in its Amsterdam share debut at the start of the year, the largest-ever defense initial public offering. British aircraft-parts maker Doncasters and Finnish communications specialist Savox have also gone public this year.

“We are bringing permanent capital, technology and world-class operators to Europe’s best companies, giving them the resources to expand, compete and strengthen the continent’s defense industrial base,” Simaitis said. He said Europe has exceptional companies, but they have lacked access to resources to grow at the scale and speed the current moment demands.