2020 challenged all of us in many ways. It pushed us outside of our comfort zone and we found ourselves navigating through an uncertain new reality.
While we are excited to wave 2020 goodbye, the truth is that hard times made us more creative and opened up new opportunities. Let’s take a few minutes to reflect on eight of the major success stories from the Campus X community in this unusual year:
1. FITE expands its services and becomes a #1 top-grossing app
Last year we spoke with the CEO of the leading live streaming platform FITE Kosta Jordanov and asked him: “What’s next for the company?”
“More streaming events, more users, additional sports, product evolution, continued learning and growth,” he replied.
And that’s exactly what 2020 has been about for FITE. At the start of the year, the company expanded its offerings by streaming sports like soccer, motorsports, basketball, international competitions, and e-sports.
FITE has recently ranked as a #1 top-grossing application across all categories. Another major milestone was the review they received in the prestigious Rolling Stone magazine.
2. HashiCorp raises $175M in Series E funding
Despite the global pandemic, HashiCorp received the impressive $175 Million in Series E funding back in March, along with a company valuation of $5.1 billion. Thus, the Campus X community became the home of a new unicorn company.
HashiCorp is a global leader in multi-cloud infrastructure software and has seen more than 100 percent year-over-year revenue growth for four consecutive years.
“At HashiCorp, we are providing the Global 2000 with the critical software they need to adopt a cloud operating model for their infrastructure,” says David McJannet, CEO of HashiCorp in a press release.
“Increasingly, our software is becoming mission-critical to the largest organizations in the world, and we take our responsibility to deliver on their expectations very seriously,” he adds.
3. Dronamics announces world’s first cargo droneport network
The cargo drone startup Dronamics also had a good year. At the beginning of December, they announced the world’s first cargo droneport network, which includes partnerships with 35 airports in Europe, including in Belgium, Croatia, Finland, Italy, and Sweden.
“The power of logistics to unlock economic value and opportunity is second to none. This is why especially in a post-2020 world, it is increasingly important to ensure same-day shipping is available not just in big cities, but in every community, no matter how small or remote,"comments the Co-Founder and CEO Svilen Rangelov.
"Now, more than ever before, it’s vital for countries to ensure uninterrupted trade and supply lines with their neighbors no matter what, and our international droneport network will allow just that,” he adds.
There’re plenty of exciting developments ahead of Dronamics, including completing the large-scale version of their cargo drone and launching their first commercial flights.
4. Healee marks a 1000% jump in e-consultations
The telehealth platform Healee announced a major spike in demand and a 1000% surge in online consultations back in April.
“In times like these, telemedicine is essential, to patients and doctors alike. It is the most appropriate, and often the only option for people to talk to a doctor, without exposing themselves and others to the risk of infection, and without putting further strain on the heavily overloaded hospitals,” as the company explains.
This November Healee launched yet another great initiative. To provide easy access to professional help online, the company facilitates the contact between doctors and people diagnosed with COVID-19, who experience mild symptoms.
5. Payhawk receives €3М and launches a NextGen card
The next generation spending software, which simplifies payments, Payhawk closed a €3 million seed funding round led by Earlybird back in March. Other VCs and industry experts that participated in the round included TinyVC, the ex-Chief Commercial Officer at Visa Europe Mark Antipof, and the Chief Strategy Officer at Sage Keith Robinson.
“This round comes only 18 months after we entered a very competitive market with well-funded players. Since then, we have experienced great market demand serving more than 1,000 users in 14 countries and quickly converting customers from existing alternatives,”comments Payhawk’s Co-founder and CEO Hristo Borisov.
In November, the company announced another big milestone - the launch of a NextGen company card. The new card empowers finance teams to implement spend rules directly on company cards or team cards, and automate the collection of receipts end to end.
“We are very excited about the future and the great roadmap we have laid down for our customers,” shares Hristo Borisov.
6. Eleven announces a successful IPO and completes its second VISA Innovation program
The venture capital fund Eleven Ventures has announced the success of its initial public offering (IPO), which raised a bit over €1M (2.1M BGN) back in March.
“We are really excited that we managed to close the IPO in such challenging times”, comments the company’s Co-founder and Manager Ivaylo Simov, who spoke to Trending Topics, adding that both they and their portfolio companies are well prepared to handle the situation and emerge stronger after it.
Furthermore, the company collaborated with VISA to launch a second cohort of startups in the VISA Innovation Program, which took place at Campus X.
For two years now, the program has nurtured fintech innovation in the South-East Europe region. Here’re a few things that happened in the program’s Seasons 1 and 2:
11 startups
$5.6M collectively raised by the program’s fintechs
7 PoC’s and pilots with Visa, banking and non-banking institutions
300+ mentor hours with Visa, Eleven, and fintech luminaries
55+ strategic meetings with banks, fintech executives, investors, and Visa, and more
7. LAUNCHUB becomes an Investor of the Year for a third year in a row
The investment fund LAUNCHub Ventures is a regional winner of the 2020’s award for Investor of the Year by the Central European Startup Awards. They receive this recognition for a third year in a row for their efforts in the early-stage venture capital space.
“Thanks to everyone for the support - we're looking to continue developing our startup ecosystem by investing in the most ambitious founders in the region,” comments LAUNCHub.
In November, the fund led a financing round of $4.5M, which was invested into the promising proptech company Giraffe360.
8. Telerik Academy becomes “Best Company of 2020” and transitions its programs online
The tech-ed organization Telerik Academy received the “Best Company of 2020” grand prize by the Forbes Business Awards back in January.
“I am happy that an education organization has received the ‘Best Company of the Year’ award. Talent is Bulgaria’s greatest resource. Therefore, we’re focused on training the digital builders of tomorrow. Thank you for the recognition - it raises the bar even higher for us. We don’t take it for granted. Just the opposite, it motivates us to go farther and become even better,”said Telerik Academy’s CEO Alexandra Mechkova, who accepted the award.
2020 started with great recognition for the Academy, which grew quickly from a startup to a company with a successful business model, whose average annual growth amounts to 120%. The company has also managed to create a large partner network of 85+ leading tech companies and has a community of 140,000 people.
With the development of the COVID-19 pandemic, the company swiftly transitioned all its trainings from an onsite to a 100% online format, making sure that online education is just as effective.
Last but not least, this year Telerik Academy launched the first comprehensive Product Management Upskill program in Bulgaria led by leading practitioners.
A year to remember
2020 will be known as the year that changed us all. But we believe that this collective experience has pushed us to think out of the box and become even better at what we do.
At Campus X, we went far and beyond to implement the highest standard of safety measures to protect our community and ensure their undisrupted business continuity. Our members kept growing and achieving major successes despite the unexpected circumstances. Also, this year Campus X received the prestigious Best Coworking Space in Bulgaria award by the Central European Startup Awards for a second year in a row – a valuable recognition of our efforts in a year like no other.
Whatever 2021 brings, we believe our community can conquer any challenge on the way to success!
Want to join our amazing community of innovative companies? Learn more here.
