Barcelona Startup News May 28 2018 – Barcinno

Hello and happy Monday, we hope you had a great weekend!

Looks like Barcelona’s taking another step in the right direction this week with tech giant Microsoft announcing plans to set up their Quantum Labs here, digital VC fund OneRagtime opening an office in our vibrant city, and Barcelona Tech City also announcing a new space for blockchain firms.

And of course, we also have several startups looking for talent in Catalonia. Check out job opportunities from Tropic, Ideal Credit, Dorna Digital, LoveToKnow & Scoot (here & here) to join some of the coolest tech firms in town.

Finally, don’t miss the launch of Barcelona’s brand-new marketing event series Tracking n Hacking this Wednesday. 

Ok, let’s take a look at the latest Barcelona startup news from this week: 

THIS WEEK’S HIGHLIGHTS:

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BARCELONA STARTUP NEWS

Startup & Investment News

• Spanish HR startup beWanted secures a €1,5M investment
• Barcelona space travel startup Zero 2 Infinity opens €1,2M
• Spain-based biotech startup Vivebiotech receives €1M 
• Spanish AI startup Capaball closes €220K investment round
• Catalan startup Freshly Cosmetics expands to the UK
• Barcelona startup insurtech Coverfy eyes up further acquisitions
• Barcelona startup ByHours opens a €10M investment round
• Catalan startup GrowPro Experience on course to reach over €2M in revenues this year
• Barcelona startup Wallbox wins 3rd place in Startup World Cup
• Barcelona-based communications security startup Fleksy wins GovTech.Pioneers award
• Barcelona startups Dribo and Fluttr win #1 & #2 price at SeedRockets XIX Campus de Emprendedores
• 42 entrepreneurs from 14 countries participated in 4th edition of Nuclio Weekend in Barcelona
• 10 Catalan startups participate in “The Next Web” tech conference
• Barcelona accelerator MedTeX selected 11 startups to join its program
• InnoEnergy opens call for Spanish energy startups
• Inveready opens new €25M fund focused on biotech startups
• Investindustrial, a VC with offices in Spain, closes €375M SME fund
• EU supports three Spanish VCs with a €165M investment
• Enisa reveals the economic and social impact of its loans
• Barcelona startup profiles, interviews & success stories:
  • Drivin: a platform that digitalizes driving schools
  • Furgo: innovating last-mile delivery transport

Tech News

• Barcelona Tech City creates new blockchain- focused space
• US tech giant Microsoft chooses Barcelona as the location for its next Design Center and Quantum Lab
• Digital venture fund OneRagtime opens an office in Barcelona
• Wayra Investors Dinner 2018 brings together startups, investors and corporates in Barcelona
• CaixaBank wants to focus on transversal digitalization to improve customer relationships
• Criteria Caixa to take over remaining 49% of shares of Barcelona car parking firm Saba to become sole shareholder 
• Barcelona-based digital solution company Aggity increases revenues by 6% to reach €7,8M
• US fund Carlyle steps up efforts to acquire Catalan cava firm Codorniu and increase the valuation of the company to €270M
• The Government of Catalonia gives green light to the construction of Hard Rock Casino in Port Aventura
• Spain is one of the most expensive countries in the EU to connect to broadband internet
• Spain to hold first 5G tender in 3.6-3.8 GHz band in mid-July
• Google launched a new feature in Spain last week that allows users to find new jobs
• Catalans earn a higher monthly salary than the rest of Spain, but it’s still €275 less per month than the EU average
• How much has the GDPR cost Spanish companies so far? €147M, according to the International Data Corporation
• Telefónica generated 1,4% of Spanish GDP & employed 0,9% of Spanish workforce in 2017
• Netflix increased its market share in Spain from 1,8% to 9,1% in 1,5 years; Amazon Prime (3,5%) & HBO (2,3%) fall behind
  • Telefonica strikes partnership with Netflix to integrate the digital TV platform into its services

Good Reads

• Why Barcelona is the perfect place for hiring young international talent
• Barcelona ranked as one of the best cities for young entrepreneurs
• The Difference Between Innovators and Entrepreneurs
• Why Blockchain is Hard
• IESE Case Study: How giving first gave me first, by Marc Antoni

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GREAT EVENTS THIS WEEK

• Tue, 29 May @ 18:30: How to boost your business with AI & tech trends
• Tue, 29 May @ 19:00: DrinkEntrepreneurs #30
• Wed, 30 May @ 19:00: You can’t hack what you can’t track!! Launch
• Wed, 30 May @ 18:00: Liderazgo femenino en inversiones
• Wed, 30 May @ 18:30: Female Leaders Month
• Thu, 31 May @ 09:00: Barcelona Customer Congress 2018
• Thu, 31 May @ 18:30: #DrinksCombined afterwork by HotelsCombined
• Fri, 1 Jun @ 10:00: Masterclass in Decentralised Organising
• Sat, 2 Jun: DNX – Festival de nomadas digitales

See the full Event Calendar here

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STARTUP JOBS IN BARCELONA

• Tropic is hiring a Social & Brand Manager
• Ideal Credit is recruiting a Jr. PhP developer
• Dorna Digital – MotoGP is hiring a Platform Product Owner
• Scoot Networks is recruiting a:
  • QA / Technical Support Engineer
  • Engineering R&D Technician
• LoveToKnow Media is hiring a Senior Backend Engineer