Stockholm’s Techarena bags €1.08m to fuel Europe-wide tech expansion

Stockholm-based Techarena has secured €1.08 million in fresh funding to expand across Europe, aiming to connect thousands more entrepreneurs amid a fast-changing tech and political landscape.

Investment comes from BackingMindsThe Swedish venture capital company is known for its support of overlooked founders. The €1.08M cash injection will help Techarena scale its signature events and launch new initiatives focused on innovation resilience across the continent.

“Europe stands at a critical moment for innovation… Techarena is at the heart of creating a thriving innovation ecosystem,” said Susanne Najafi, founder of BackingMinds, via Techarenan News. “We have followed the company over a decade, and we share a similar vision: making capital and networks accessible to an even wider range of outstanding entrepreneurs.”

What is Techarena

Techarena, founded in 2014, is a rapidly growing entrepreneurship platform that brings together startups, scaleups and policymakers as well as investors, industry leaders, and business leaders from more than 120 countries.

Its flagship events – including Techarena Challenge, TOP46. Raise the Roof – have hosted names like Sir Richard Branson, Steven Bartlett, and NASA astronaut Jessica Meir.

Omid Ekhlasi is the CEO and founder. Silicon Canals It is time to go global

“Europe’s technology scene has reached a critical inflection point.” Nordic founders have proven they can build global category leaders… Taking the model and scaling it now will accelerate the momentum.”

Techarena is growing explosively

• Growth of 600 percent in revenue over the last three years
• Over 18,000 participants – founders, investors, and corporates – joined its events in the past year
• Recent pilots conducted in cities such as Paris and Munich has shown that there is a scalable demand

Backed by a booming market; Europe’s business events sector is expected to hit $124 billion (€115 billion) by 2030. Techarena’s momentum is booming.

Ekhlasi believes that entrepreneurs today are looking for more than venture capital.

“The most common request from founders isn’t just investment – it’s access to real customers,” he told Silicon Canals.
Securing a deal with a company or landing a project as a pilot can be the deciding factor that validates a business.

The founders are also struggling with mental health issues, regulation and finding the right investors. Techarena is a platform that aims to address all of these issues under one roof.

Ekhlasi thinks that a mental shift in Europe’s startup eco-system is long overdue:

“At Techarena 2025… I said that teams and countries come to the stadium to compete… but we are here to collaborate, not compete.”

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