Defence Builder, created by Sigma Software, KSE and Buntar Aerospace, is expanding from an accelerator into a full-fledged defense tech ecosystem.
Defence Builder, created by Sigma Software, KSE and Buntar Aerospace, is expanding from an accelerator into a full-fledged defense tech ecosystem.
As the Defence Builder press service informed dev.ua, this ecosystem was headed by Darya Yanieva, Investment Director of Sigma Software Labs.
In addition to the acceleration program, it currently includes a venture investment fund and new areas — market analytics, deal support, due diligence, and corporate governance.
«We built the accelerator as a tool to prepare companies for the market — not only in terms of technology, but also business capabilities. It’s about the ability to work with investors, make decisions in a complex environment, and scale,» noted Darya Yanieva.
A $5 million venture investment fund has been formed within the Defence Builder ecosystem, which makes investments in the early stages of development.
The investment size in one company is up to $300,000, and the fund currently has four portfolio companies: sine.engineering (communications and navigation), Falcons (electronic warfare and control systems), MaXon Systems (interception systems), and Huless (unmanned communications solutions).
By the end of the quarter, it is planned to close several more investment deals, and in parallel, the launch of a second, larger investment fund is being considered during the year.
Additional areas of Defense Builder, in addition to the accelerator and investment fund, are support for deals (including market entry, structuring partnerships, M&A, and joint ventures), conducting due diligence taking into account the specifics of defense tech, and building corporate governance in accordance with the standards of international institutional investors.
Another separate area is sectoral analytics, which the team is developing together with the KSE Institute.
«In practice, this means that a company can go all the way within one system: from initial selection and validation of the product to preparation for investment, conducting due diligence, structuring the deal and forming a scaling strategy. For the investor, this is, accordingly, access not just to the company, but to a prepared investment opportunity with analytics, verification and a clear development logic,» the Defence Builder press service noted.
As dev.ua wrote, in September last year, the Ukrainian defense accelerator Defence Builder announced the resignation of CEO Kateryna Bezsudna.
