London-based Primary Portal, a digital platform that modernises equity capital market processes for banks and asset managers, announced that it has completed the first stage of its £7.5M (approximately €8.90M) Series A funding round.
The round was led by DB1 Ventures, the venture capital arm of Deutsche Börse Group. Existing shareholders Dutch Founders Fund (DFF) and Flow Traders also participated in this round.
Primary Portal expects further investors to join the round in a second close in the second half of the year.
Stefan Maassen, Head of Capital Markets & Corporates at Deutsche Börse, says, “At Deutsche Börse, we believe in innovative solutions to shape capital markets and are committed to strengthening the ecosystem.”
“By digitising communication and workflows, Primary Portal paves the way for efficient connectivity between asset managers and banks in equity issuances, improving the process for companies to raise capital. Our partnership and commitment underscore our confidence in Primary Portal, its hard-working team and the European equity market,” adds Maassen.
Accelerating digitisation in the equity issuance process
Primary Portal is a fintech company focused on developing and operating digital infrastructure solutions for equity capital markets and on automating manual and time-consuming processes in the issuance process.
Founded in 2020 by John Bentinck and Ilan Leshem, who have over 20 years of experience in equity capital markets, Primary Portal’s platform addresses inefficient, analogue workflows.
With over 90 banks and 400 institutional investors onboard, the company is digitising the equity issuance space by creating interoperable capital markets infrastructure.
Capital utilisation
The funds will help Primary Portal to expand its offering, particularly by connecting asset managers’ order systems with banks for seamless transactions and enhancing its analytical data solutions for banks and asset managers.
Co-founder Leshem, says, “The demand for AI-driven analytics products is immense. Adding next-generation analytics on the back of real-time, golden-source data is merely the beginning.”
“We are delighted to welcome Deutsche Börse as a shareholder and are very excited to work together with them in further enhancing connectivity and digitisation for capital markets” adds co-founder Bentinck. “Their investment is a strong endorsement of our collaborative approach to bringing digital solutions to market participants.”
Brief about the investors supporting Primary Portal
DB1 Ventures is the corporate venture capital arm of Deutsche Börse Group, focused on partnering with early- to growth-stage companies aligned with Deutsche Börse’s strategy. Deutsche Börse Group, an exchange organisation, ensures market integrity, transparency, and stability, offering products and technologies for efficient and secure financial markets.
Dutch Founders Fund (DFF) is an early-stage VC fund based in Amsterdam, founded by the creators of WeTransfer, Just Eat, Treatwell, and fonQ. It invests in Vertical SaaS, B2B marketplaces, and network-effect businesses across Europe and the MENA region. Since 2018, DFF has invested in over 30 companies and manages nearly €100M.
Flow Traders is a global liquidity provider that enhances trading efficiency and lowers costs for market participants. Flow Traders Strategical Capital invests in companies that improve transparency and efficiency in financial markets, aligning with Flow Traders’ strategic goals.
01
These are the top UK-based PR agencies for startups and scale-ups in 2025