Yvonne Bajela Raises $17M for New European VC Fund Evertrue

Veteran venture capitalist Yvonne Bajela is stepping into a new chapter of her investment career after raising $17 million for her first independent fund, Evertrue. The fund will focus on supporting early-stage startups across the U.K. and Europe, with particular interest in artificial intelligence (AI) and fintech.

Announced Tuesday, Evertrue’s first fund closed at $17 million, exceeding its original fundraising target. The firm has already invested in seven companies and plans to support at least 20 businesses over the next three years.

Bajela brings more than a decade of venture capital experience to the new firm. During her career, she worked at LocalGlobe and Impact X Capital Partners, backing several companies that later achieved unicorn status, including fintech company Wise, insurance startup Marshmellow, and robotaxi company Mooves.

Explaining her decision to establish an independent investment firm, Bajela said she wanted the freedom to act on her investment beliefs and create a fund that reflected her own approach to backing founders.

“After more than a decade backing founders who bet everything on their ideas, it felt like time to make a bet of my own,” she said.

Evertrue Targets Early-Stage Startups Across Europe

Evertrue plans to make investments of approximately £350,000 per company. With its $17 million Fund I, the firm aims to build a portfolio of at least 20 startups over the next three years.

Bajela believes the current AI boom has created an attractive opportunity for early-stage investors. According to her, artificial intelligence has significantly changed the cost and accessibility of building new companies, allowing more entrepreneurs to turn ideas into products.

However, she believes creating a lasting business remains much harder than simply developing a product.

“The ability to build has been democratized,” she said. “But the ability to build something enduring remains rare.”

The fund will primarily target AI and fintech businesses, although its investment decisions will also depend heavily on the founders behind each company.

London’s Growing AI Ecosystem Creates New Opportunities

The U.K. startup ecosystem has been attracting increasing attention from international investors, particularly as London strengthens its position as a global technology and AI hub.

King’s Cross has emerged as one of the world’s leading AI hubs. Meanwhile, companies such as Revolut, Synthesia, ElevenLabs, and Bezos-backed CuspAI are demonstrating the growing potential of British technology businesses.

Bajela sees this environment as an opportunity to identify promising founders before their companies reach larger funding stages.

She believes the next generation of globally successful businesses will emerge from a wider range of backgrounds and starting points.

“I think more globally significant businesses will emerge from a wider range of starting points,” she said.

Raising Capital Was Not an Easy Process

Despite the successful fund launch, securing investment commitments was challenging.

Emerging fund managers are operating in a competitive fundraising environment. In the United States, venture capital funding has increasingly concentrated around established firms and investors with proven track records.

The situation in the U.K. appears somewhat more encouraging. PitchBook data through the end of September showed that emerging fund managers in the region had raised $7.4 billion, already exceeding the $6.2 billion collected throughout 2025.

Nevertheless, Bajela described her fundraising experience as demanding. Some of the most difficult moments involved potential investors who spent months discussing the opportunity before eventually declining to participate.

She explained that lengthy fundraising discussions without clear decisions can create significant costs for founders and fund managers, particularly because time is such a valuable resource.

British Business Bank Among Five Institutional Investors

Evertrue successfully secured five institutional backers, including the British Business Bank and Basecamp, the fund-of-funds operated by investment firm Phoenix Court, which is also home to LocalGlobe.

The fund was also selected for the British Business Bank’s £400 million Investor Pathways capital initiative. Through this initiative, the institution committed £90 million to 10 first-time fund managers.

Bajela originally planned to raise approximately $13 million. However, stronger-than-expected investor interest helped Evertrue close at $17 million.

Despite receiving additional interest, she decided against expanding the fund further.

For Bajela, raising a larger amount of money is not necessarily a sign of a better investment strategy. She wanted sufficient capital to build meaningful positions in companies she strongly believes in without creating unnecessary pressure to invest simply because more money was available.

“Fund size is a strategic decision, not a measure of success in itself,” she said.

International Investors and a Global Investment Strategy

Around 80% of Evertrue’s limited partners (LPs) are based in the U.K., while the remaining investors come from Europe, Asia, and the United States.

Bajela said the international investor network reflects relationships she has developed through more than a decade of working across different markets.

The fund also has international ambitions. Many British startups eventually look toward the U.S. market as part of their expansion strategies, and more than half of Evertrue’s existing portfolio companies already operate in the United States.

This international outlook could help the fund support companies looking to expand beyond their home markets.

Bajela Looks for Ambitious Founders With Unique Insights

Beyond market opportunities and financial performance, Bajela places considerable importance on the people building companies.

She is particularly interested in entrepreneurs who have a unique understanding of a problem, strong execution capabilities, and the ambition to build businesses that extend beyond their initial products.

She also considers a founder’s personal journey, including the challenges they have overcome and how those experiences have influenced their business perspective.

Before launching Evertrue, Bajela gained international investment experience, including working in Japan as a senior investment manager at Mistusi. She also began her professional career as an analyst at Goldman Sachs.

These experiences have shaped her belief that entrepreneurial talent and ambition exist across different countries and backgrounds.

With its first $17 million fund secured, Evertrue is now positioning itself to identify and support the next generation of promising European startups.

For Bajela, the long-term goal is straightforward: build a reputation around the founders she supports and the successful businesses they create.

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