Swedes launch firm to invest €10M in Ukrainian defence tech by end of 2025
Varangians founders Pär Lager, Andreas Flodström, and Jonas Rydin plan to close first deal by the end of July
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This article first appeared on Defender Media and is republished here with permission.
Three Swedish entrepreneurs with ties to Ukraine have founded Varangians, an investment group focused exclusively on Ukrainian defence startups. Varangians co-founder and CEO Pär Lager told Defender Media that the company plans to invest €10 million in Ukrainian defence tech by the end of 2025.
Lager’s partners in Varangians are Andreas Flodström, co-founder of Beetroot, who has been doing business in Ukraine for 12 years, and Jonas Rydin, adviser of the Ukrainian defence accelerator Defence Builder. Both Rydin and Lager are officers with close ties to the Swedish Army and several Ukrainian units.
Another founder of Varangians is a Swedish family office that wishes to remain anonymous but has already invested €2.8 million in the company, according to Lager.
Varangians has identified four key areas for investment: unmanned systems, electronic warfare, countering disinformation, and demining. The company is currently in talks with five Ukrainian defence startups, two of which are in the final stages of due diligence.
The average Varangians investment will range from €100,000 to €1 million. Lager expects the first investment to be announced by the end of July 2025. A more detailed interview with him will be published on Defender Media next week.
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