VSquare

What VSquare does

VSquare is a non-profit English-language investigative journalism platform covering Central Europe, operated by the Reporters' Foundation (Fundacja Reporterów), a non-profit foundation registered in Warsaw, Poland. The platform publishes original investigations, analyses, news, and interviews focused on the Visegrád region (Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia) and neighboring countries (Romania, Moldova, Ukraine), with thematic emphasis on Russian and Chinese influence operations, disinformation, crime and corruption, hybrid threats, environmental issues, politics, and the war in Ukraine. It serves general public readers, policy makers, researchers, analysts, journalists, and academic researchers seeking English-language coverage of Central European affairs, and is positioned as Central Europe's only dedicated English-language investigative platform for this geography.

VSquare's core products are the VSquare.org news platform, the Goulash editorial newsletter written by Lead Investigative Editor Szabolcs Panyi, and a portfolio of long-form investigations produced in collaboration with regional partner outlets including Direkt36 and Átlátszó (Hungary), Investigace.cz (Czech Republic), and Expert Forum, Funky Citizens, and Context (Romania). The platform is built on standard web content management infrastructure — Google Workspace for administration, HubSpot for CRM, Ecomail/Mailchimp for newsletter distribution, and Google Analytics for traffic analysis — with no proprietary technology layer. Content is published under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license, enabling free republication by partner media and amplification of reach.

VSquare is funded entirely through donations and reader contributions rather than commercial sales; content is free to access. The editorial team is small, anchored by Budapest-based Lead Investigative Editor Szabolcs Panyi (a European Press Prize finalist in 2018 and 2021) and contributing authors Orsolya Fülöp and Tamara Kaňuchová. The organization maintains no publicly disclosed revenue figures, no app products, no API, and no AI/ML capabilities, and operates without subsidiaries, M&A activity, or external funding rounds in the data set.

Name

VSquare

Legal name

Reporters' Foundation (Fundacja Reporterów)

Website

https://vsquare.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

VSquare is a non-profit English-language investigative journalism platform operated by the Reporters' Foundation in Warsaw, covering Central Europe (Visegrád region plus Romania, Moldova, Ukraine) with original reporting on Russian and Chinese influence, corruption, disinformation, and the war in Ukraine, funded by donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Investigative Journalism

NAICS

Web Search Portals, Libraries, Archives, and Other Information Services (519)

SIC

Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711)

akta.pro primary industry

Investigative & Nonprofit News Organizations (MPAJADAF)

akta.pro secondary industry

Alternative/Independent Newsweeklies & Opinion Press (MPAJADAH)

Keywords

• Investigative journalism
• Central Europe reporting
• Disinformation research
• Cross-border investigations
• Public interest reporting

Headquarters

HQ city

Jette

HQ country

Belgium

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

VSquare is a non-profit English-language investigative journalism platform that publishes original reporting, analyses, news, and interviews on Central European affairs, with thematic focus on Russian and Chinese influence operations, disinformation, crime and corruption, environment, politics, and the war in Ukraine. It distributes content through its vsquare.org website and the Goulash newsletter, all published under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license and funded through reader donations.

Product overview

VSquare is a non-profit investigative journalism platform operated by the Reporters' Foundation in Warsaw, Poland. It serves as Central Europe's leading English-language investigative outlet, offering original journalism through its main news platform and the Goulash Newsletter. The platform publishes investigations, analyses, news, and interviews focused on Russian and Chinese influence, disinformation, war in Ukraine, crime and corruption, and political developments across Central Europe. Content is produced by staff journalists and international partners, distributed under Creative Commons license, and supported by donations and reader funding.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Goulash Newsletter: VSquare's original newsletter delivering investigative journalism from Central Europe, written by Szabolcs Panyi.

Products and services

• Goulash Newsletter A regular email newsletter delivering original investigative scoops and journalism from Central Europe, written by Szabolcs Panyi, covering Russian influence, corruption, and political developments in the Visegrád region; subscribers receive it via the Ecomail platform.
• VSquare Investigations In-depth investigative articles and reports covering crime and corruption, disinformation, Russian influence operations, environmental issues, and political developments across Central Europe, produced by VSquare journalists and republished from partner outlets, all available free under Creative Commons.
• VSquare.org News Platform The Central European English-language investigative journalism platform operated by the Reporters' Foundation, publishing original investigations, analyses, news, and interviews focused on Russian and Chinese influence, authoritarianism, disinformation, the war in Ukraine, and regional politics, with content distributed free under Creative Commons.

Quantifiable outcome

• Original investigative reporting that has led to European Parliament responses and policy discussions (e.g., Kremlin Hotline investigation on Hungary-Russia coordination)

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• EUobserver: Established English-language outlet covering EU policy and politics with some investigative reporting on the same geopolitical issues VSquare covers, but with a much broader scope.
• Politico Europe: Major European political journalism outlet covering EU affairs, including Central European politics and Russian influence, with significantly broader scope and scale than VSquare.

Direct peers

• Direkt36: Hungarian investigative journalism outlet that is both a partner and direct peer of VSquare, sharing investigative topics such as Russian and Chinese influence, corruption, and Hungarian governance.
• Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN): Regional investigative journalism network covering the Balkans and parts of Southeast Europe with a cross-border partnership model analogous to VSquare's Central European network.
• OCCRP: Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project is a global cross-border investigative journalism network with overlapping themes of corruption, Russian influence and accountability reporting in Central/Eastern Europe.
• Bellingcat: Open-source investigative outlet working on Russian influence, hybrid warfare, conflict and disinformation — directly comparable topic set and methodology, with broader geographic scope.
• The European Correspondent: European affairs investigative and explanatory outlet where VSquare contributor Tamara Kaňuchová also writes; comparable English-language European coverage with a similar niche focus.
• Investigace.cz: Czech investigative journalism organization and VSquare partner, working on corruption, organized crime and Russian influence — closely comparable in mission and regional focus.
• Átlátszó: Hungarian investigative outlet and named VSquare partner, focused on corruption, public spending and transparency in Hungary — overlapping strongly on geography and beat.

Others

• Reporters Without Borders (RSF): International press freedom NGO that operates in the same ecosystem of independent journalism support in Central and Eastern Europe; not a direct competitor but a potential partner/funder and comparable in mission orientation.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Vsquare_Project
• Facebookfacebook.com/VSquareProject
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/v-square

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about VSquare