From Founding to Exit: New Training Program on Strategic Financing for Startups
This December, GU Ventures launches a new two-day intensive training program: Financial Design for Startups ("FDS"). The program is led by serial entrepreneur and researcher Per Hulthén, powered by GU Ventures and its co-financers and designed to strengthen expertise in long-term startup financing and capitalization – knowledge that is increasingly crucial in the competitive Swedish entrepreneurial ecosystem.
The program builds on three decades of experience in investing and raising capital by the GU Ventures team and its partners and nearly a decade of research and practice by serial entrepreneur and researcher Per Hulthén, the author of the educational series who translates insights into practical tools to guide entrepreneurs and their mentors towards more robust financing strategies and better long-term outcomes.
Whilst GU Ventures have built and invested in 200 new companies during these three decades, of which 70 are exited and 15 are listed; serial entrepreneur, Per Hulthén, co-founded and built companies such as Illuminate Labs, acquired by Autodesk, and LumenRadio, now publicly listed at Nasdaq First North. He has spent the last couple of years conducting his research at Chalmers and he was also part of building the Venture Cup business plan competition, where he still serves on the national jury.
CEO of GU Ventures, Klementina Österberg, presents their joint ambitions:
”Per Hulthén and GU Ventures have established this training program in close collaboration and we are now proud and delighted to finally launch FDS together. With this program, we provide startup entreprenuers, board members, business coaches and mentors with essential insights, that are rarely accessible at an early stage, but that can make all the difference in navigating growth, reducing risks, and ultimately creating more successful companies and exits. This initiative reflects GU Ventures commitment to supporting entrepreneurs with the expertise they need to raise capital, exceed expectation and thrive in an increasingly competitive ecosystem”, says Klementina Österberg, CEO GU Ventures.
What participants will gain
For two intensive days, participants will work through the key challenges of startup financing and value creation, including:
Developing long-term financing strategies – from launch to exit
Understanding the startup lifecycle and maximizing value in each phase
Building stronger pitch decks and optimizing funding rounds
Learning from differences between Swedish startups and international counterparts (USA, Israel, UK)
Identifying the most common causes of failure – and how to reduce risk
Applying negotiation theory: valuation, terms, and strategies to avoid common pitfalls
And last, but not least, about the exit process and the journey with the investors who invest their capital
Practical details
📅 Dates: December 2–3, 2025
⏱️ Format: Two-day intensive program
📍 Location: The University of Gothenburg, Ågrenska Villan, Mölnlyckerummet, Högåsplatsen 2, Göteborg
👥 Target group: Entrepreneurs in startups, Incubator coaches, Business developers, Board members, Mentors, etc.
🧾 Fee: SEK 9,999 per participant (excl. VAT, travel & accommodation)
🤝 Organizers: GU Ventures within its EU-projekt KRAFT, in collaboration with SISP.
Webpage: fds.education
Limited spots – high interest
With growing attention on how Sweden can strengthen its startup ecosystem, interest in the program is already high. Seats are limited and allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.
About Financial Design for Startups (FDS)
FDS is a new training program in Financial Design modelling for entrepreneurs in startups, incubator coaches, business developers, board members, mentors, etc. The program is launched and established in collaboration between the GU Ventures team and serial entrepreneur and researcher Per Hulthén, who aim to strengthen expertise in the long-term capitalization of startups and create better exits achieved by Swedish entrepreneurial companies.
The research basis for FDS comes from a series of research projects, Exit Value Study 1-3 (EVS), conducted during 2016-2024. Exit Value Study (EVS 1–3) is a series of large-scale research projects in collaboration between Chalmers University and the University of Gothenburg with support from Carl Bennet AB, Region of Västra Götaland and Business Region Gothenburg. The primary focus of the EVS research was to understand what happened long-term to venture capital funded startups, and the most important influences behind these long-term outcomes.
FDS also is based on three decades of experience in investing and raising capital by the GU Ventures team and its partners, the Angel Investment Companies in Sweden connected to seven incubators; and nearly a decade on research (published, working papers and dissertations), industry reports, practitioner books, blogs, and finally the practical experiences of serial entreprenuer and author Per Hulthén. It is a mix of knowledge from theory and practice that makes the best insights.
The training program of FDS is created thanks to financing from Vinnova and GU Ventures, and the educational material is created within the KRAFT project, co-financed by the European Union through Tillväxtverket, Region of Västra Götaland and GU Ventures.
Read more: fds.education