The Gap After the Raise
Most Web3 startups stall at go-to-market: no clear audience, no tested narrative, spend going out with nothing coming back. A cap table doesn’t fix that. Neither does another round.
“A raise buys you runway, not traction. We judge the Startup Battle to find teams serious about the harder job, going to market.”
— Max Bashmakov, CEO, Generis
That gap is why Generis judges startup competitions in the first place, and why the prize we put behind EBC12’s Startup Battle is exactly what winners need next.
Generis at EBC Barcelona
EBC12, the 12th edition of the European Blockchain Convention, runs on September 16-17, 2026 in Barcelona. The event draws 6,000+ attendees from 90+ countries, including 300+ investors and investment professionals, and has become one of the largest deal-making venues for digital assets in Europe.
The Startup Battle is EBC’s pitch competition for early-stage teams: founded in 2022 or later, under €6M raised, live product or credible MVP, and at least three full-time team members. Twelve finalists pitch live on the EBC Barcelona Startup Battle stage to the full investor floor. Three winners are selected.
The 2026 finalists are: CryptoMate, VANT Network, Treesury, &Volume, Kryptos, Toto Finance, Lympid, Cobault, DeFa by InvoiceMate, SatsBridge GmbH, Orion Finance, and Bitsave.
Generis sits on that judging panel this year. Yana Makhnyk, Generis Chief Growth Officer, joins the jury alongside representatives from Speedinvest, Softstack, and Animoca Brands to evaluate which teams are actually ready for what comes after a raise.
“What we’re looking for are founders who understand their go-to-market — who they’re selling to, how they’re reaching them, and why now.”
— Yana Makhnyk, CGO, Generis
Generis is also contributing to the winners’ prize package: a set of Generis marketing services, PR, and media work, among them, aimed at the specific problem most fresh winners have in common, a raise (or a competition win) with no go-to-market plan behind it yet.
This isn’t a new pattern for us. At the Ibiza Tech Forum, where Generis was a partner, the winner from that event became a Generis client afterward. Judging is how we find teams before everyone else does.
How We Back Startups
The support Generis gives EBC12’s winners follows the same go-to-market framework we run for every client: research and positioning before a single channel gets touched, then a coordinated launch across the channels the strategy points to. We’ve written the full method out in detail, phase by phase, in our go-to-market framework guide, worth a read for any founder trying to work out what comes after a raise, competition win, or listing.
Generis European Blockchain Convention Promo Code 2026
As a partner of the European Blockchain Convention 12, taking place in Barcelona on September 16-17, 2026, Generis provides a discount code for EBC12 tickets.
Code: EBC12-GENERISB
Discount: 15% off your European Blockchain Convention tickets
How to apply it: Enter the EBC Barcelona discount code at checkout on the official EBC12 ticket page before completing your purchase. The discount applies to General Pass and VIP Pass tickets.
FAQ
- What is the EBC12 Startup Battle, and what’s Generis’s role in it?
The Startup Battle is the European Blockchain Convention’s pitch competition for early-stage Web3 and digital asset founders: twelve finalists pitch live in front of 300+ investors and investment professionals at EBC12 in Barcelona, and a panel selects three winners. Yana Makhnyk, Generis Chief Growth Officer, sits on that judging panel this year alongside representatives from Speedinvest, Softstack, and Animoca Brands, so Generis is one voice on a shared jury, not the sole decision-maker. Separately, Generis is contributing to the winners’ prize package: a set of marketing services aimed at the go-to-market gap most competition winners face right after they win.
- How do I work with Generis on go-to-market?
Reach out to us directly. It’s open to any Web3 founder — whether you’re competing at EBC12, attending, or not headed to Barcelona at all. If there’s a fit, our team follows up to talk through your stage, your market, and what a go-to-market engagement with Generis actually looks like. It’s a starting point, not a commitment on either side.
- Is there an EBC Barcelona discount code for tickets?
Yes. Generis has a partner discount code for EBC12 tickets, separate from the codes distributed by EBC’s other sponsors. You’ll find the code, the exact discount, and how to apply it at checkout on our dedicated EBC12 promo code page, no form or email required to use it.
