In Tech Defense, the sovereign VC Fund of Lithuania is one step forward

Europe is awakened by the need to invest in defense and So are the European VCS But with a painful history of the Soviet professions, Lithuania does not wait for the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to reach its third anniversary to commit a commitment 5% to 6% of GDP to military expenses – and start -ups of the Fund’s defense.

Lithuania’s sovereign VC fund Coinvest Capital He was a pioneer in this regard and it is still an appearance not to require civil use. “We were the first in the region (for) fully authorized to make defense investments in March 2023,” says Victoria Trimbel, her managing partner since February 2023.

Unlike many Lithuanians, Trimbel is not high at all. But what she lacks in basketball potential, she compensates for energy and ruthlessness, especially in terms of intercession for innovation in defense technology to strengthen Europe’s security.

Unmanned Defense Systems (UDS), based in a Vilnius company focused on optimizing the “murder chain”, has received Coinvest’s biggest investment in this domain, but it is not the only one. According to Trimbel, Evergreen Fund has invested about 6.8 million euros (approximately $ 7.37 million) in aerospace, defense and double use startups since 2023.

Compared to A billion-dollar circles Floods in US technology companies, the amount may not sound very impressive. This is, unless you consider it a population, something people often call for you to do in this small Baltic country of 2.89 million inhabitants.

Creating is another understanding that Lithuania often emphasizes, as is Coinvest. As its name implies, the fund at an early stage jointly invests in start -up companies with business angels and other VCs. For early -stage transactions he accepted closed Profit -sharing structure This tribel is especially passionate.

As a member of the Lithuanian Business Angel Network (Litban), which now has 324 members, it has a particular desire to see more intelligent cash flow on the market. While the collective value of the Lithuanian starting ecosystem increases 39 times in 10 yearsThe country still lacks a way out as impactful as Skype was about Estonia.

And yet, liquid events such as The secondary sale of Vinted It had a drip effect and Trimbel believed that Coinvest could quickly multiply these euros. When he left Interactio in just 18 months, his rules strengthened the return on Angel’s investors from 9x to 34x. “I believe it was one of the factors that facilitated the explosive growth of the ecosystem of a business angel,” Trimbel said.

In defense equipment, Trimbel Champions also succeeds in providing capital. The only restricted Coinvest partner, the National Lithuania Development Bank, also provided “major capital injections to other local VCs such as BSV Ventures or Scalewolf, including () Lithuanian contribution to the NATO Innovation Fund (NIF)” celebrated is LinkedIn.

The same way, trimbel is satisfied To see governments across Europe, which accept the tendency to “invest in deter and defense for more support for the competitiveness and sustainability of European countries.”

It is a need that Lithuania is very aware, often deeply personally. “When I was 18, I saw with my own eyes, Russian tanks kill people. So for us this is not the history of the textbook, “Trimbel said, citing 1991. January events in which the Soviet military tried to suppress Lithuania’s independence movement.

The trauma of the Soviet rule, which is deeply rooted in the collective memory of Lithuania, extends far beyond 1991. “This is something that every family has experienced in one way or another: occupation, deportations, killings. We don’t have to teach us why we should invest in defense, “Trimbel said.

Yet, after the war in Ukraine, there was a renewed sense of urgency and solidarity. The edition of 2025 of RadarPublic raising a fundraising for Ukraine raised More than EUR 5.6 million For drones and anti-wrestled, including UDS. Trimbel approved it, insisting, “Support Ukraine now … and every other day until victory.”

Like almost all Lithuanians, Trimbel remembers where she was when Russia launched her full invasion of her eastern neighbor on February 24, 2022. A few days earlier, she was abroad with her two daughters and they discussed whether they should return because they left the war-like daughter.

A cat or no cat, Trimbel would probably return to Lithuania in any way. She points out that her first name Victoria or victory is a good match for her ruthless personality. Her circle of girlfriends is also consistent: “Instead of going to the bar and discussing a new bag or dress or lipstick, we go to the shooting range,” she said with a smile.

Of course, not everyone reacts in the same way – it is only a person to experience a flight or to freeze a reflex. However, in the immediate vicinity of the war, it aims to remove others from this paralysis, encouraging them to take practical steps. One of them was to join volunteer initiatives that won steam in Lithuania.

The most iconic organization in this area is the Government-backed Lithuanian Lithuanians Union (Lithuanians (Lru). While it is dedicated to defense and strengthening of Lithuania, its activities extend beyond military training: together with Coinvest and others, it jointly organizes the organization of Hakaton on Fire Shieldwhich will return in 2025 for the third edition.

This is the context in which Trimbel is depicted above, along with the Union Commander, Lieutenant Colonel Linas Idzelis (in uniform) and retired lieutenant colonel Valeridjus Sheris, a former squadron commander of the Special Operations, that the forces not this random country Sent to support NATO allies in Afghanistan after September 11.

LRU also contributed to a civic response during the Covid-19 pandemia as well as a trimbel who invests efforts in a Slam -based ventilation projectS “Covid was a good rehearsal to mobilize society during threat,” she said. For her, this threat has changed now, but she is very real.

But even now, Trimbel is taking care of areas other than defense technology as well as Coinvest. She speaks enthusiastic about launching a portfolio Walk15 and his upcoming “Labrador Walk“Outdoor hike with dogs to encourage people to take more steps to be more active – literally.

However, as she has recently written LinkedIn Post“No other return on investment will matter if Ukraine will not receive sufficient support from allies and Europe will have invaded further.” As her name and personality suggest, she will not give way to her efforts to prevent this result.