UFORCE raises £530m from Valor Equity Partners and UK National Wealth Fund
This article covers UFORCE, a defence startup, raising £530m in a growth funding round co-led by Valor Equity Partners and the UK National Wealth Fund. The funding will expand production capacity across the US, Europe, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East and finance continued operations and R&D in Ukraine, supporting allied defence procurement and Ukrainian industrial capability.
UFORCE, a defence startup that builds uncrewed platforms for sea, land and air, has raised £530 million in a growth funding round co-led by Valor Equity Partners and the UK National Wealth Fund — a deal that values the company at £4.51 billion and signals significant public and private backing for sovereign defence manufacturing. The funding will expand production capacity across the US, Europe, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East and support continued operations and R&D in Ukraine.
Why it matters
This is one of the largest single investments in a European defence technology company this year. The mix of strategic backers — including a sovereign UK fund and a US-led reconstruction vehicle — underlines a political as well as commercial rationale: building production close to allied demand, preserving Ukrainian industrial capability, and scaling combat-proven autonomous systems for partner forces.
UFORCE’s valuation and the involvement of public funds will attract scrutiny and interest from defence procurement teams and policy makers. For the UK, the National Wealth Fund’s participation dovetails with recent efforts to shore up domestic defence supply chains and create high-skilled manufacturing jobs in emerging defence technologies.
Inside the product
UFORCE produces uncrewed platforms and the command-and-control software layer that coordinates them. Its portfolio includes:
- MAGURA family of uncrewed surface vessels, with plans to scale US manufacturing via a partnership with ReconCraft.
- NEMESIS family of strike unmanned aerial platforms, which the company says have flown more than 300,000 combat sorties and are deployed across 100+ units on the Ukrainian battlefield.
- LIUT ground robotic platforms.
- PREDATOR turret family of counter-UAS systems.
- Integrated C2 software to orchestrate operations across domains.
The company is headquartered in London, was founded in Ukraine, and maintains major hubs in Kyiv and Washington, DC, with operations across Europe, the US and Asia. UFORCE positions its approach as lowering the unit cost of defensive systems and emphasises distributed production to keep supply lines resilient under conflict conditions.
Who are the investors?
The round was co-led by Valor Equity Partners and the UK National Wealth Fund. Participants include the U.S.–Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund, Menlo Ventures, Xantium and Hiro Capital. Existing backers Shield Capital, Ballistic Ventures, Lakestar and Squadra increased their stakes.
Valor has added General (Ret.) Christopher Cavoli, a former NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe, to UFORCE’s board. The deal is described as the U.S.–Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund’s largest investment in emerging technology to date; URIF’s support is explicitly linked to sustaining operations and R&D in Ukraine.
In the announcement, Christopher Cavoli, Partner at Valor Equity Partners, said:
Ukraine has shown the world how quickly battlefield innovation can move when engineers work side by side with the people who rely on their systems. UFORCE turns that hard-won frontline experience into both unmanned systems and the operational know-how to use them effectively. I’m proud to join the board and look forward to supporting the team as it strengthens Ukraine’s defense and that of its allies.
In the announcement, Oliver Holbourn, Chief Executive Officer at National Wealth Fund, said:
Today’s investment is a testament to the special relationship that the UK and Ukraine have fostered. Through the National Wealth Fund’s support, UFORCE’s expansion is bringing the production, engineering and application of combat tested autonomous systems to the UK. It will help create high-skilled jobs, strengthen domestic supply chains and reinforce the UK’s position as a leading centre for innovation in technologies that are increasingly important to national security and economic resilience.
In the announcement, Conor Coleman, Head of Investments at U.S. International Development Finance Corporation, said:
This deal is URIF’s largest investment in the emerging technology sector to date and a significant step toward mobilizing investment that strengthens Ukraine’s economic fortitude, reinforces its security, and accelerates its long-term recovery. UFORCE reflects the kind of bold, innovative Ukrainian company URIF is built to support, one helping turn Ukraine’s resilience and ingenuity into lasting economic and strategic strength for the United States, Ukraine, and our allies.
If you're researching potential backers in this space:
- Explore our list of defence venture capital firms in the UK
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Founder perspective
In the announcement, Oleg Rogynskyy, CEO at UFORCE, said:
The war in Ukraine has shown that in an increasingly volatile world, effective defence requires systems that can keep improving as threats change. Governments and the technology ecosystem need to come together to develop cost-effective, interoperable, and autonomous platforms that are ready to fight now, and can evolve to meet future needs. They are doing that by investing in UFORCE. This investment will help us scale production for Ukraine and bring to allies solutions they can field, integrate and sustain at the speed of modern combat. UFORCE and our investors are united in our determination to make aggression unaffordable.
Rogynskyy frames the funding as both a scaling vehicle and a protective measure for Ukrainian industry: continuing production despite attacks and converting civilian maritime and automotive capacity in allied nations where needed.
The bigger picture
The deal sits at the intersection of geopolitics and venture capital. It reflects growing willingness among public funds and private investors to underwrite high-cost, dual-use defence projects that carry strategic value beyond financial returns. For the UK, participation by the National Wealth Fund is a signal of intent to embed advanced manufacturing and systems integration work domestically.
For the European defence ecosystem, the round underscores a trend toward industrialising battlefield-tested innovations and building sovereign production networks. How national procurement processes, export controls and interoperability standards evolve will determine whether such investments translate into long-term capability rather than short-term capacity.
This transaction will be watched by defence procurement teams, investors and startups across Europe and the US as an example of how capital, policy and operational experience are being combined to accelerate delivery of autonomous defence systems.
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