“We need to be in San Francisco to win in Europe,” says Spotify and Lovable backer

The founder of the Sweden-founded VC firm which has backed high-profile European tech companies, including Spotify, Lovable and Black Forest Labs, says the VC needs to be in San Francisco to win in Europe. Creandum founder Staffan Helgesson made the comments as US VC firm Sequoia said it was shutting its London office. Last week, Creandum said it had closed its largest ever fund, a $750m fund, as well as opening its first office in San Francisco. The new $750m fund, Fund VIII, is up in size from Creandum’s previous fund, Fund VII, which was a €500m ($560m) fund. The VC, which has also backed Klarna and UK chip startup Olix, has had a presence in San Francisco since 2012, and has now opened its first office in the city. Speaking on the Tech.eu podcast, Helgesson said: “We need to be in San Francisco to win in Europe. It’s because we can be helpful to our portfolio.  “We are more attractive to founders. We’re a better investor in Europe because we see what is happening here. We can d