{
  "id": 8224122,
  "title": "5 European success stories investors initially passed on",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/18/5-european-success-stories-investors-initially-passed-on",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-09-18T09:51:39.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "EU-Startups",
    "slug": "eu-startups",
    "url": "https://www.eu-startups.com/2026/09/10-european-success-stories-investors-rejected/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Five European technology success stories once faced skepticism from investors before achieving global prominence. BlaBlaCar, a French carpooling service, was rejected by multiple investors who deemed carpooling too niche and difficult to monetize. Skype, a Swedish internet voice call platform, also encountered rejection, with investors wary of disrupting the global telephone network. Despite these setbacks, BlaBlaCar grew into a unicorn with 40 million active members across 41 countries, while Skype was eventually acquired by Microsoft for $8.5 billion. Starling Bank, a UK mobile-first bank founded by Anne Boden, faced skepticism over the practicality of starting a new bank and her ability to lead. Despite numerous failed pitches, Starling secured its banking licence in 2016 and now boasts 6.2 million platform accounts and €252 million in pre-tax profit. Lastly, Spotify, a Swedish music streaming service led by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon, was initially dismissed by investors concerned with licensing complicated music industry regulations. Despite the rejection, Spotify flourished and became a global titan in music streaming.",
  "summary": "Venture capital is supposed to be about spotting the future – catch is the future has a habit of looking rather questionable when it first walks into a pitch meeting. Among the most famous international examples being Airbnb, whose founders were rejected by multiple investors before building a global hospitality giant; Google, which was reportedly […] The post 5 European success stories investors…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}