In Defense Tech, the Sovereign VC Fund of Lithuania is one step ahead

Europe wakes up on the need to invest in defense, and The same goes for European VCs. But with a painful story of Soviet occupations, Lithuania did not wait for the third anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine by Russia to reach its third anniversary to get involved 5% to 6% of its GDP to military spending – and finance defense startups.

Sovereign VC funds of Lithuania Coinvest capital was a pioneer in this regard, and it is always an aberrant value in the fact of not requiring cases of civil use. “We were the first in the region [to be] Completely authorized to make defense investments in March 2023, “said Viktorija Tribel, his director partner since February 2023.

Unlike many Lithuanians, the Trimbel is not tall at all. But what it lacks in basketball potential, it compensates in energy and relief, especially when it comes to defending innovation in defense technology to strengthen the security of Europe.

Unmanned defense systems (UDS), a company based in Vilnius focused on the optimization of the “killing chain”, received the largest investment in Coinvest in this area, but it is not the only one. According to Tribel, the Evergreen fund has invested some 6.8 million euros (around 7.37 million dollars) in aerospace, defense and double use startups since 2023.

Compared to Rounds billion dollars Floods in American defense technological companies, the amount may not seem very impressive. It is unless you consider it per capita, something that people often urge you to do in this small Baltic country of 2.89 million inhabitants.

Co-creation is another idea that Lithuania often underlines, just like Coinvest. As its name suggests, the fund at an early stadium co-invest in startups with business angels and other VCs. For the agreements at the start of the stadium, he adopted a capped Profits structure This tour is particularly passionate.

As a member of the board of directors of the Lithuanian Business Angel Network (Litban), which now has 324 members, she is particularly wishing to see more smart money traveling on the market. While the collective value of the Lithuania start -up ecosystem has increased 39 times in 10 yearsThe country still has no exhaust as that of Skype for Estonia.

However, liquidity events such as Secondary sale of Vintted Had a drip effect, and the Tribel thinks that Coinvest can multiply these euros quickly. When he left interactio after only 18 months, his rules increased the yields of providential investors from 9x to 34x. “I think it was one of the factors that facilitated explosive growth in the commercial angels ecosystem,” said Trimbel.

In Defense Tech too, Tribel defends the success of others in capital security. The only limited partner in Coinvest, the National Development Bank of Lithuania, also provided “major capital injections to other local VCs like BSV Ventures or Scalewolf, especially [the] Lithuanian contribution to the NATO Innovation Fund (NIF) ”, it famous is LinkedIn.

Likewise, the Trimbel happy See governments through Europe adopting the tendency to “invest in deterrence and defense to further support the competitiveness and resilience of European countries”.

It is a need that Lithuania is cruelly conscious, often deeply personally. “When I was 18, I saw with my own eyes, Russian tanks killing people. So for us, this is not a story of textbooks, “said Trimbel, referring to the years 1991 January events in which the Soviet army tried to suppress the independence movement of Lithuania.

The trauma of the Soviet rule which is deeply anchored in the collective memory of Lithuania extends far beyond 1991. “It is something that each family lived in one way or another: occupation, deportations, murders. We don’t need to be taught why we have to invest in the defense, “said Trimbel.

However, since the war in Ukraine, there has been a renewed feeling of emergency and solidarity. The 2025 edition of Radara public fund collection campaign for Ukraine, collected more than 5.6 million euros For drones and anti-line systems, including UDS. Trimbel approved it, urging: “Support Ukraine now … and any other day until victory”.

Like almost all Lithuanians, Tribel remembers where she was when Russia launched her complete invasion of her oriental neighbor on February 24, 2022. A few days earlier, she was abroad with her two daughters, and they discussed if they were to return as signs of war.

Cat or no cat, the Trimbel would probably have returned to Lithuania anyway. She stresses that her first name, Viktorija, or Victory, is a good match for her relentless personality. Her circle of friends is also up to the task: “Instead of going to the bar and discussing a new handbag or a dress or a lipstick, we go to the shooting field,” she said with a smile.

Of course, not everyone reacts in the same way – it is only human to experience a flight or frost reflex. In the aftermath of the war, however, it aimed to get the others out of this paralysis by encouraging them to take practical measures. One of them was to join volunteer initiatives that won steam across Lithuania.

The most emblematic organization in this area is the union of Lithuanian filins for non -LukeLru). Although he is dedicated to the defense and strengthening of Lithuania, his activities extend beyond military training: with Coinvest and others, he co-organized the Fire shield hackathonwhich will return in 2025 for a third edition.

It is the context in which the Tribel is represented above, with the union commander, Lieutenant-Colonel Linas Idzelis (in uniform) and the retired lieutenant-colonel Valeri Šerelis, former squadron commander of the special operations forces that the special operations forces that the special operations forces that the special operations forces have supposed Country not to this sense Sent to support NATO allies in Afghanistan after September 11.

LRU also contributed to the civil response during the COVID-19 pandemic, just like TRIMBEL, which has invested efforts in a Helmet -based ventilation protection project. “Covid was a good rehearsal to mobilize the company during threats,” she said. For her, this threat has now changed, but it’s very real.

But even now, Tribel cares about areas other than defense technology, just like Coinvest. She spoke enthusiastically to the wallet startup Walk15 And his neighbor “Labrador Walk», An outdoor hike with dogs to encourage people to take more measures to be more active – literally.

However, as she wrote in a recent Post Linkedin“No other investment return has importance if Ukraine will not receive sufficient support from allies and Europe will be more advantageous.” As her name and her personality suggest, she will not give in to her efforts to prevent this result.