Float Secures $4.8M to Fuel European Tech Growth Without Equity Loss

Jan de Vries · 2026-07-15

Stockholm-based Float, a revenue-based financing platform for tech SMEs, has raised $4.8 million in a Series A round aimed at bridging the European tech funding gap. ### The Investment Details The round was led by Hamburg-based CHAPTERS Group AG, a holding company that invests in attractive small and medium-sized enterprises across various industries. Their portfolio includes Swiss wealth management software provider Finfox, German FinTechs Fintiba and Expatrio, and 60 other mission-critical vertical market software businesses across Europe. Notable shareholders include Daniel Ek's family office and Danaher founder Mitch Rales. Jan-Hendrik Mohr, CEO of CHAPTERS, will join Float's board. "Our investment in Float underlines our positive view on the European tech industry," said Mohr. "Float's financing service already gives tech SMEs a reliable means of scaling their business. However, as the company expands their offering and explores competitor acquisitions, they are now a driver of a much larger, shared vision to empower founders across the continent." ### What Float Does Founded in 2019 by Swiss entrepreneur Cedric Notz and German entrepreneur Jannis Koehn, Float is an AI-native financial operating platform. It helps technology SMEs across Europe access growth capital and automate financial operations. The company combines non-dilutive funding with AI-powered financial management tools. This lets founders scale faster without sacrificing equity or getting bogged down by unnecessary bureaucracy. "The current global financial system is fundamentally broken for modern tech companies," said Float CEO and co-founder Cedric Notz. "While startups operate internationally from day one, banking remains stubbornly localised, bogged down by manual bureaucracy and fragmented tools. As a founder in the tech industry myself, I have experienced the difficulties of securing working capital firsthand." ### Beyond Simple Financing Float's mission has been to provide liquidity to the European tech sector by offering non-dilutive growth capital, credit lines, and revenue-based financing. This allows B2B SaaS and subscription businesses to fund their growth without relinquishing equity or fundraising outside of Europe. But the startup has bigger plans. It aims to evolve from a provider of simple, flexible credit lines to an AI-native financial platform for startups. This will enable founders to navigate their finances with greater speed and efficiency. However, lending will remain the core of the business. Once operational, the tool will leverage live access to bank accounts and accounting systems. It will provide financial analysis and automate tasks including payments, expense management, and accounting. "However, our ambition runs far wider than fixing financing," added Notz. "We are building the new backbone for European tech—the capital, banking, and data, all in a single AI-native financial platform built for the 21st century. For too long the continent's best founders have faced one brutal choice: give away their company, or leave for America. We want founders to succeed here in Europe." ### Growth Plans and Track Record Float plans to deploy this fresh capital to double its team size and expand its presence in the UK, already the company's largest market. The company also plans to leverage their strategic partnership with CHAPTERS to enter the M&A market. Operational since 2022, the company has provided over 130 European tech companies with funding. This includes hotel revenue management company RoomPriceGenie and marketing optimization platform RedTrack. More than $108 million has been allocated over the past three years, and the company has recorded over 100% year-on-year growth. ### Key Takeaways for Founders - Non-dilutive funding means you keep your equity - AI-powered tools automate financial operations - Revenue-based financing aligns with your cash flow - The platform supports B2B SaaS and subscription businesses - Expansion into M&A could open new opportunities Float is positioning itself as a critical partner for European tech founders who want to scale without giving away their company or moving to the US.