F1V Has Written Off 10 Investments and Says That’s Too Few
Since 2018, Ukrainian venture firm Flyer One Ventures (F1V) has backed more than 90 startups with nearly $45 million in total investments. Around 10% of those have already been written off, according to the company’s co-founder and partner Oleksii Yermolenko, who spoke to Forbes Ukraine.
«This is not enough, we need to work on increasing this figure,» Yermolenko said. According to him, top international VC firms typically have a higher write-off rate.
«They deliberately invest in riskier startups: either it’s a company that returns 10x or more, or it doesn’t take off at all,» he added.
Among the closed companies is Elision, which had been developing a platform for podcast distribution and monetization. The names of the other written-off startups have not been disclosed.
Yermolenko explained that in a typical VC portfolio, one breakout company returns the entire fund. Another 2–3 generate over 5x returns, while the rest either deliver modest returns (2–3x) or get written off completely. He added that F1V’s portfolio already includes startups that have grown more than tenfold since investment.
On July 10, F1V announced the launch of a new €50 million fund, partially backed by two major international institutions — the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC).
About F1V
Flyer One Ventures is a Ukrainian VC firm launched in 2018. It invests in startups across Ukraine and Central and Eastern Europe, with a focus on software companies targeting global markets. The fund is led by managing partner Vital Laptenok. Since launch, F1V has invested in 87 companies, with total investments reaching $45 million.
The average ticket size is $500,000, but the company is open to writing checks from $100,000 to $2 million at the pre-seed and seed stages. F1V does not invest in hardware, web3 projects, or game studios. According to the firm, 50% of its portfolio companies have already raised Series A rounds.
F1V Has Written Off 10 Investments and Says That’s Too Few
Since 2018, Ukrainian venture firm Flyer One Ventures (F1V) has backed more than 90 startups with nearly $45 million in total investments. Around 10% of those have already been written off, according to the company’s co-founder and partner Oleksii Yermolenko, who spoke to Forbes Ukraine.
«This is not enough, we need to work on increasing this figure,» Yermolenko said. According to him, top international VC firms typically have a higher write-off rate.
«They deliberately invest in riskier startups: either it’s a company that returns 10x or more, or it doesn’t take off at all,» he added.
Among the closed companies is Elision, which had been developing a platform for podcast distribution and monetization. The names of the other written-off startups have not been disclosed.
Yermolenko explained that in a typical VC portfolio, one breakout company returns the entire fund. Another 2–3 generate over 5x returns, while the rest either deliver modest returns (2–3x) or get written off completely. He added that F1V’s portfolio already includes startups that have grown more than tenfold since investment.
On July 10, F1V announced the launch of a new €50 million fund, partially backed by two major international institutions — the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC).
About F1V
Flyer One Ventures is a Ukrainian VC firm launched in 2018. It invests in startups across Ukraine and Central and Eastern Europe, with a focus on software companies targeting global markets. The fund is led by managing partner Vital Laptenok. Since launch, F1V has invested in 87 companies, with total investments reaching $45 million.
The average ticket size is $500,000, but the company is open to writing checks from $100,000 to $2 million at the pre-seed and seed stages. F1V does not invest in hardware, web3 projects, or game studios. According to the firm, 50% of its portfolio companies have already raised Series A rounds.
