Crown’s seed round was led by Heartfelt with participation from Kima Ventures, Backbone Ventures, Another.vc, Apok Invest, Prequel VC, Bpifrance and Ukrainian venture capital fund ZAS Ventures. Famous football player Mario Gotze was also among the investors and business angels.
Crown’s seed round was led by Heartfelt with participation from Kima Ventures, Backbone Ventures, Another.vc, Apok Invest, Prequel VC, Bpifrance and Ukrainian venture capital fund ZAS Ventures. Famous football player Mario Gotze was also among the investors and business angels.
According to EU-Startups, the round also included business angels such as Dr. Marcel Vollmer, former Chief Operating Officer of SAP Ariba; Christoph Willen, Global Head of Supply Chain and Procurement Technology at Nestlé; and Mario Götze, German national team and Eintracht football player and business angel.
Crown is a SaaS platform that «transforms procurement,» allowing for savings of 6% and acceleration of negotiations by 70%, according to the startup’s description.
«For nearly 30 years, electronic auctions have been used exclusively to drive down prices, often in a manner that is inconsistent with the principles of transparency and ethics. At Crown, we view auctions not as a weapon, but as a tool that, when used ethically, creates mutually beneficial outcomes for buyers and suppliers», — said Mykyta Voitenko, Founder and CEO of Crown.
Voitenko founded Crown in 2024 and is said to have over 15 years of experience in international supply chains and procurement. He has led strategic initiatives at companies such as Nestlé, Engie and Sanofi, and has conducted over 300 e-auctions for leading FMCG companies.
According to Crown, procurement accounts for up to 60% of an industrial company’s turnover, making it a key lever for cutting costs and generating profits. Negotiations, a central part of procurement, can directly impact savings and profitability. E-auctions streamline this process, allowing suppliers and buyers to complete negotiations in as little as 20 minutes through Crown’s platform.
«At Heartfelt, we seek exceptional founders with unparalleled experience and a bold vision to transform their industries. Mykyta’s deep understanding of procurement, combined with his ability to transform industry challenges into innovative solutions, is what sets Crown apart. By reimagining negotiations through technology, Crown is not just streamlining processes, but fundamentally changing how procurement teams create value,» said Jörg Reinboldt, Founding Partner at Heartfelt.
In less than a year since its founding in 2024, Crown reportedly outpaced traditional auction systems and implemented e-auction programs with four clients, allowing them to channel nearly 50% of their spend through e-auctions.
The company says that e-auctions are just the first step. Crown aims to create a complete AI-based procurement package.
