May 9 (Reuters) - German defense startup Helsing is set to raise new funding at a valuation of about $18 billion, the Financial Times reported on Saturday.

Here are some details:

• The $1.2 billion fundraising is being led by U.S. firm Dragoneer Investment Group, with existing backer Lightspeed Venture Partners acting as co-lead, the FT said, citing people familiar with the matter.

• The latest Helsing fundraising was oversubscribed multiple times, the FT said.

• The fundraising plans are at an advanced stage but the timing has not yet been finalized, the newspaper said.

• Helsing, Dragoneer and Lightspeed did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside regular business hours. Reuters could not immediately verify the report.

• Founded in 2021 and backed by Daniel Ek, defense technology firm Helsing started by making AI software for defence firms but moved to designing drones after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.