Sam Koekoek
Co-Founder & CEO, Klearly
19 Jan 2026Europe’s Newest Unicorn, Hiro Capital Deep Dive, Thinking Machines Drama, Listen Labs does $100M
2:37:0012 min
Sam Kukuk: Cleverly's €12M Series A for Restaurant Payments
Sam Kukuk, co-founder and CEO of Cleverly, announces a €12 million Series A led by PayPal Ventures with IFF (Italian Founders Fund) joining and follow-ons from Global PayTech Ventures, Antler and Shapers, taking total funding to €20 million. He explains Cleverly's focus on restaurants — tap-to-pay that turns handheld ordering devices into payment terminals plus a new "Tap 2" suite for reviews and loyalty — with 4,000+ merchants in the Netherlands and expansion into Italy and Belgium. He also covers relationship-driven restaurant sales, how most of Europe still runs non-integrated payment setups, his background at payments startup Unipass, and why PayPal's fintech depth made it the right lead.