Polish Venture Capital Market Reaches Record Levels
Investments in the Polish venture capital market totaled 4.6 billion PLN (1.06 billion euros), surpassing both the 3.3 billion PLN recorded for the entire year of 2025 and the 3.6 billion PLN from the previous record year, 2021. This is according to a report published on July 15. The new record is primarily attributable to the mega-funding rounds by ElevenLabs and ICEYE, which totaled 3.7 billion PLN.
The report on transactions in the Polish venture capital market in the second quarter of 2026 was prepared by PFR Ventures, the venture capital arm of the state-owned Polish Development Fund (PFR), in collaboration with Inovo.vc. According to the data, 56 funds invested a total of 0.6 billion PLN in 43 innovative companies during the second quarter. In addition, the Polish-Finnish space technology company ICEYE completed a mega-funding round during the reporting period, raising 1.9 billion PLN.
“The growth is even more pronounced when compared on a half-year basis. In the first six months of 2026, Polish startups raised a total of 4.6 billion PLN, including several mega-funding rounds. By comparison, venture capital investment totaled 3.6 billion PLN in the record-breaking year of 2021 and 3.3 billion PLN in 2025. This year’s result was significantly influenced by the funding rounds for ElevenLabs and ICEYE, which totaled 3.7 billion PLN,” according to the press release accompanying the report.
The AI company ElevenLabs secured several major funding rounds in 2026, thereby solidifying its position as a global leader in AI language technology. In February, the company raised $500 million in a Series D funding round, reaching a valuation of $11 billion. In June, the Polish sovereign wealth fund Vinci participated in an expanded funding round with an investment of $11 million. At the same time, the establishment of AI Lab Poland was announced.
“The first half of 2026 saw two parallel developments. On the one hand, there are globally active companies that attract the world’s largest investors and raise record amounts of capital. On the other hand, we are observing an extremely active market in early-stage development, where startups are raising ever-higher amounts of capital and funds are increasingly collaborating. In the first half of 2026, co-investments already accounted for 59% of the total transaction volume. This shows that the Polish venture capital ecosystem is increasingly maturing and becoming better equipped to build companies with global potential,” said Rozalia Urbanek, CEO of PFR Ventures.
In the first half of 2026, the number of co-investments by Polish and international funds rose by 60% compared to the previous year. International investors increasingly view local management teams as key partners. At the same time, Polish venture capital funds made 56 foreign investments with a total volume of 444 million PLN.