saas.group
saas.group focuses on acquiring SaaS companies, particularly those with a 'bootstrapper mindset'. They aim to provide founders with a founder-friendly exit, financial freedom, and the opportunity to start new ventures. Their strategy involves improving the acquired product, scaling the team, and maintaining the original company identity that drove its success. They view acquisitions as a platform for founders to become part of something bigger, take risk off the table, and take business processes to a new level. saas.group values companies with a strong product-market fit and ARR between $2M and $10M. They are drawn to companies with product-led growth strategies, self-service models with limited operating costs, remote-first cultures, and international teams. They also consider VC-backed companies where there's potential for a bootstrapped "reboot". The firm emphasizes a transparent and streamlined due diligence process respecting the founder's time. They're interested in information about product, user base, financials, and legal status, and often gain direct access to key tools such as Stripe, Intercom, and Chargebee for deep-dive analysis. They champion a 'no jerk' policy, respecting the hard work of acquired companies and wanting to preserve their cultures. They aim to keep the acquisition process simple, supporting autonomy and mastery within acquired teams. They believe a successful exit goes beyond financial metrics, focusing on the founder’s happiness and future plans.
torq.partners
torq.partners specializes in providing flexible, expert-led finance support to startups and companies, focusing on operational efficiency, investor readiness, and strategic financial guidance. Their team of 60+ finance professionals offers interim and fractional CFO services, finance operations setup, M&A advisory, fundraising support, and financial due diligence. They cater to diverse industries, helping companies optimize cash flow, improve reporting, and scale finance functions without long-term commitments.
vent.io
Vent.io is a corporate venture capital (CVC) arm of Deutsche Leasing AG that aims to accelerate the growth of the German Mittelstand by investing in and building digital solutions. They focus on strengthening Deutsche Leasing AG's position as the financial backbone of the German Mittelstand by driving digitalization and innovation and creating long-term value for its customers. They operate two business areas: product engineering, which builds data-driven digital solutions, AI-powered products, and customer-centric portals for Deutsche Leasing Group, and corporate venture capital (CVC), which invests in B2B startups and connects them with the Deutsche Leasing ecosystem and customers through strategic partnering and pilot projects. Vent.io's investment strategy centers around data-driven B2B startups from seed to Series A. They leverage Deutsche Leasing AG's 60+ years of experience in the leasing business, its €40+ billion assets under management, and its extensive distribution network to benefit their portfolio companies. This network includes 341 savings banks and over 100 top-tier OEM partners. The firm emphasizes strategic relevance, long-term value creation, and strengthening the future of asset finance and asset-related services. They also prioritize venture partnering, assisting startups in developing needs-based strategies and identifying strategic customer fit within the Deutsche Leasing ecosystem. This includes facilitating access to customers and partners and helping startups expand their customer base through pilot projects with clear KPIs to validate business potential.
Ace of Cups
Ace of Cups, led by Roman Sydorenko, invests exclusively in the no & low-ABV specialty beverage space. This includes drinks with unique flavors, complexity, and purpose. Roman invests his own capital initially and may invite like-minded investors to co-invest in deals he's excited about. The firm has a particular interest in no & low-ABV gourmet specialty beverages designed for wine occasions, with a specific focus on single-origin tea expressions, from Mizudashi-style brews to pét-nat teas. The firm aims to back early stage companies building remarkable offerings in this niche. Roman's background as the founder of the dating app PURE, sold in 2022, provides him with experience in building and scaling businesses. This experience likely informs his investment decisions and provides valuable insights to his portfolio companies. He actively shares insights through LinkedIn and is further developing his expertise through writing a book on the subject. The investment thesis centers around the growing demand for sophisticated non-alcoholic and low-alcohol beverage options. Roman's focus on beverages designed for wine occasions suggests a targeting of consumers seeking alternatives within established fine-dining and social settings. He intends to release a book on the space that includes profiles of producers and details on techniques and ingredients, which he will use to establish himself as a thought leader in the space.
Acton Capital
Acton Capital is a growth equity firm that invests in internet and mobile communications companies, focusing on consumer-oriented business models in e-commerce, media, and marketplaces. They target companies ready to scale and built to last. They aim to partner with startups at Series A and beyond, providing them with the capital and support needed to achieve rapid growth and long-term success. Their approach appears to be entrepreneur-oriented, aiming to enable founders to focus on high-value tasks and leverage their expertise. The firm emphasizes a rational, data-driven approach to investment decisions. Acton Capital's investment strategy includes both geographic expansion, as seen with investments like Henchman, and innovative partnerships, like that with Maple and SE Health, to improve healthcare access and delivery. They seem to look for companies that demonstrate rapid adoption, strong revenue growth, and a product that seamlessly integrates into existing workflows. The firm's earlier strategy, as indicated by the Heureka Growth Fund, involved providing financial resources and operational expertise to support the growth of internet-based businesses. The firm places emphasis on selecting companies with a clear value proposition and potential for international success. Overall, Acton Capital looks to invest in companies that are technologically innovative and quickly gain user traction and revenue to later be acquired by larger companies or be sustainable on their own.
Alpine Space Ventures
Alpine Space Ventures focuses on backing bold founders building the backbone of the space economy, prioritizing execution over hype. They invest in teams solving hard problems with scalable technology, united by a shared mission to advance the space industry. The firm targets startups in the space (enabled) industry, aiming to support critical infrastructure and solutions that drive the industrialization of space. Their investments span across ground segment infrastructure, satellite platforms, and key components manufacturing. They aim to back companies that will reduce launch costs, enhance satellite capabilities, or deliver efficient solutions for space applications. Alpine Space Ventures emphasizes connectivity and advanced technologies as fundamental pillars for expanding the space sector and supporting innovation in both software and hardware.
B2Venture
B2Venture is a European venture capital firm that focuses on backing "the Unique, the Mavericks, the Outliers." They aim to leverage the power of generations to shape tomorrow by investing in the earliest stages of companies with the best ideas and brightest minds. The firm is supported by a community of angel investors spanning both tech and industry, who provide expertise, entrepreneurial experience, and hands-on support to portfolio companies. They invest primarily in the pre-seed and seed stage with the ability to invest in later stages through a Direct Investments track. B2Venture emphasizes its role as a long-term partner for entrepreneurs, providing deep experience, unwavering dedication, and unique expertise to support portfolio companies.
BMW i Ventures
BMW i Ventures is the venture capital arm of the BMW Group, focusing on investments in early-stage companies that are reimagining the future of automotive and related industries. They seek visionary founders dedicated to solving real-world challenges in large markets. Their investments aim to drive the transition towards an autonomous, connected, electric, and shared mobility future. This includes advancements in areas like batteries, material innovation, in-vehicle sensors, and transportation applications. Their investment strategy also encompasses streamlining the purchasing process and enhancing customer experience through online platforms, customer systems, augmented reality, digital marketing, and mobile applications. Furthermore, they target companies enhancing the storage, process, transfer, and retrieval of information, including data analytics, AI, cloud management, cyber security, and development tools. BMW i Ventures is committed to transforming traditional manufacturing processes with automation, additive manufacturing, cyber-physical security, Internet of Things (IoT), and cloud computing. They also seek to advance the efficiency, transparency, and resiliency of supply chains through computer vision, data management, and logistics optimization. Their investment scope extends to sustainability, aiming to accelerate decarbonization and facilitate the development of more sustainable systems in energy, mobility, built environment, industrials, and beyond. They leverage the collective expertise and extensive network of their team and corporate partner, BMW, to add value to their portfolio companies. This collaboration provides startups with access to industry knowledge, technological resources, and potential partnerships within the automotive ecosystem.
BayWa r.e. Energy Ventures
BayWa r.e. Energy Ventures aims to drive the energy transition by championing renewable energy developments and assisting investors, developers, utility providers, governments, and businesses in embracing sustainability. They focus on accelerating the global shift away from fossil fuels by uniting industry expertise and utilizing the latest technologies. As an integrated global renewable energy project developer and Independent Power Producer (IPP), they work across wind, solar, and battery storage systems, with dedicated expertise in Asset Operations and Energy Trading. They also serve as a global supplier to the solar distribution market, contributing to a mission focused on promoting renewable energies for the planet. Their investment strategy centers around supporting companies involved in various aspects of the renewable energy sector. This includes project development and realization, asset operations (managing and optimizing utility-scale projects), revamping and repowering ageing wind and PV projects, energy trading, power purchase agreements (PPAs), and independent power production (IPP). They aim to be a trusted expert partner for renewable energy goals. They develop renewable energy projects to help investors, developers, utility providers, governments and business drive forward the energy transition. Like their partners, they are on a mission to accelerate the global shift away from fossil fuels. They unite leading expertise from across their industry to effect positive change using the latest technologies.
Blockchain Founders Capital
Blockchain Founders Capital invests in founders building the future of the internet. The firm focuses on early-stage companies within the blockchain and web3 space. They highlight a belief in backing teams that aim to leave a lasting legacy. They provide investments into companies which they believe will revolutionize various sectors, from fintech to creator economies, gaming, and developer tools. They also emphasize staying in the loop with updates on investments, portfolio firms, and events, encouraging subscription to their newsletter, suggesting a proactive engagement with the broader blockchain ecosystem.
Blueworld.Group
blueworld.group invests in visionary capital and strategic insight to turn ambitious, sustainable ideas into transformative realities, empowering pioneers to drive tomorrow’s world with responsible innovation.
DB1 Ventures
DB1 Ventures is the venture capital arm of Deutsche Börse Group. Based on the limited information available, it appears their investment thesis centers around strategic investments in companies that enhance or complement Deutsche Börse Group's existing financial infrastructure and market services. This includes companies involved in electronic trading platforms, data analytics, and the digitization of capital markets processes. They seem to seek out businesses with validated product-market fit and the potential to scale across regulated markets. A key aspect of their strategy likely involves leveraging Deutsche Börse Group's expertise, network, and market access to accelerate the growth of their portfolio companies. The focus appears to be on investments that can contribute to the overall innovation and efficiency of the financial ecosystem. The portfolio companies indicate a focus on businesses operating within trading, market intelligence, and capital markets infrastructure. By investing in these areas, DB1 Ventures aims to capitalize on emerging trends and technologies transforming the financial industry. They likely prioritize companies with strong management teams and scalable business models that align with Deutsche Börse Group's long-term strategic objectives. The firm's investment decisions appear to be driven by the potential for synergistic relationships between the portfolio companies and Deutsche Börse Group's existing businesses. This suggests a preference for investments that can generate strategic value beyond pure financial returns. Given Deutsche Börse Group's global presence, DB1 Ventures may also target companies with international expansion potential. Overall, the investment thesis seems to be rooted in supporting innovation and driving efficiency across the financial markets landscape, with a particular emphasis on strategic alignment with the parent company's broader goals.
DTCP
DTCP is a platform focused on specialist investment strategies, driven by the conviction that rapid technology adoption fuels innovation, disrupts industries, and unlocks unprecedented wealth creation. Their approach is centered on identifying and investing in transformative sectors, where digital advancements lead to lasting impact and growth. They focus on two primary investment strategies: Infra and Growth. DTCP Infra specializes in digital infrastructure investments within the European mid-market. They target essential assets like data centers, mobile towers, and fiber networks. Their aim is to support the growth of these critical infrastructures, playing a vital role in enabling the modern digital economy. They believe that ESG and sustainability principles are integral to creating value for investors and stakeholders alike by mitigating risks and capturing new opportunities. Proactively addressing ESG matters throughout the investment cycle not only benefits society but also drives value creation and enhances investment outcomes. DTCP Growth partners with top enterprise SaaS entrepreneurs in Europe, the US, and Israel. They focus on growth-stage companies – scale-ups – in Cybersecurity, Vertical SaaS, DevOps, Cloud, AI, and Robotics. Their goal is to drive transformative growth and support their journey toward successful global expansion. DTCP aims to deliver transformative value to its portfolio companies through a team of over 60 professionals with a unique blend of financial acumen and vast operational experience.
DTCP Deutsche Telekom Capital Partners
DTCP operates as a platform focused on specialist investment strategies, driven by the belief that rapid technology adoption fuels innovation, disrupts industries, and unlocks wealth creation. Their investment approach is centered on identifying and investing in transformative sectors where digital advancements lead to lasting impact and growth. They focus on both digital infrastructure and growth-stage enterprise SaaS companies. DTCP aims to play a vital role in enabling the modern digital economy by supporting the growth of critical infrastructures and driving transformative growth in their partner companies, supporting their journey towards successful global expansion. The firm also emphasizes ESG principles as integral to creating value for investors and stakeholders, focusing on environmental sustainability and social responsibility to reduce business risk and enhance financial performance. DTCP's ESG Committee oversees the integration of ESG principles across all aspects of their operations.
DTCP Digital Transformation Capital Partners GmbH
DTCP Digital Transformation Capital Partners is a platform focused on specialist investment strategies, driven by the conviction that rapid technology adoption fuels innovation, disrupts industries, and unlocks unprecedented wealth creation. Their approach centers on identifying and investing in transformative sectors where digital advancements lead to lasting impact and growth. DTCP operates across two primary investment strategies: Infra and Growth. DTCP Infra specializes in digital infrastructure investments within the European mid-market. They focus on developing and operating essential assets like data centers, mobile towers, and fiber networks, supporting the growth of critical infrastructure for the modern digital economy. DTCP Growth partners with top enterprise SaaS entrepreneurs in Europe, the US, and Israel. They concentrate on growth-stage companies (scale-ups) in Cybersecurity, Vertical SaaS, DevOps, Cloud, AI, and Robotics, aiming to drive transformative growth and support their journey toward successful global expansion. DTCP's ESG and sustainability principles are integral to their value creation process. They believe proactively addressing ESG matters throughout the investment cycle not only benefits society but also drives value creation and enhances investment outcomes. They are committed to the UN Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Deep Tech & Climate Fonds
Deep Tech & Climate Fonds (DTCF) is a venture capital firm that invests in visionary companies driving breakthrough innovation and the transformation of the economy. As a long-term investor, they partner with entrepreneurs and other private investors, including venture capital funds, family offices, and corporations, to back the technology champions of tomorrow. They focus on companies with long development cycles, deep technology roots, and bold visions, providing capital, expertise, and strategic support to navigate complex growth journeys and reach international markets. DTCF's goal is to strengthen Europe's global competitiveness by helping companies scale, enter new markets, and design future-ready exit paths. They aim to connect high-tech startups, SMEs, and long-term-oriented investors to drive sustainable success and support those who shape the future of Europe's tech leadership. DTCF is funded by the German Future Fund and the ERP Special Fund, and provides long-term support to scale groundbreaking ideas in DeepTech and ClimateTech. They offer more than just funding and act as a sparring partner, offering technology foresight and a cross-industry perspective, with a focus on sustainable, long-term growth. They aim to help build resilient battery value chains, assist in advancing sustainable technologies, and deliver hardware to make clean fusion power a reality. DTCF values a long-term investment horizon and deep technical expertise, aligning with business models focused on sustainable technologies. DTCF aims to bridge the gap between investors, SMEs, and early-growth tech startups. They are committed to investing long-term capital in pioneering DeepTech and ClimateTech companies, leveraging their backgrounds in science, engineering, and venture building to provide hands-on experience and a shared passion for turning innovation into impact. The firm is focused on building bridges between startups and other investors, demonstrating a willingness to dig in, challenge constructively, and make conviction-based decisions. DTCF also takes ESG factors seriously, publishing an ESG report in 2024.
Expedite Ventures
Expedite Ventures is a business angel group of CTOs and CPOs focused on investing in and mentoring tech founders, with a particular emphasis on creating sustainable businesses. They provide both capital and in-depth, hands-on mentorship derived from decades of collective experience in building and scaling technology companies, which they believe is at least as valuable as funding. They prioritize supporting underrepresented groups in tech, including female and immigrant entrepreneurs. They are particularly interested in DevTools that promote cross-functionality, bridging gaps between developers and other creative colleagues. The firm looks for founders who identify and address real problems with innovative solutions. They value teams with industry expertise, unique access to data or resources, and a combination of smart technological implementations. They also invest in companies that combine AI, document management, and payments to tackle inefficiencies in the fintech and legaltech spaces. Their investment strategy involves partnering with founders and teams who demonstrate a clear vision, an innovative use of state-of-the-art technology, and the potential to disrupt their respective industries. They emphasize hands-on support to the companies they invest in and provide mentorship to ensure success.
First Momentum Ventures
First Momentum Ventures is a pre-seed venture capital firm focused on investing in B2B startups in Europe that address hard problems with complex technology. They aim to be the companion for technology founders at hour zero, providing a strong foundation for sustainable growth. The firm's core belief is in backing highly ambitious teams with scientific or technological breakthroughs, helping them turn these innovations into impactful startups. They emphasize a hands-on, supportive approach, delivering "first momentum" to their portfolio companies. This includes providing resources, a relevant network, and the expertise needed to navigate the complexities of building a successful deep tech startup. Their Pre-Seed DNA means they have deep expertise in guiding companies from zero to one, leveraging their experience since 2015. Their team of engineers and scientists enables them to speak the language of technical founders and understand highly technical products, markets, and commercialization paths. They strive to offer tangible support through high-value connections to talent, customers, and future investors, emphasizing that IQ and EQ are equally important in their relationships with founders. Beyond capital, First Momentum builds ecosystems for technical founders by creating communities, knowledge resources and events tailored to this audience.
Foundamental
Foundamental is a global venture capital firm investing in early-stage companies daring to innovate within the "project economy." This encompasses sectors critical to global growth, including infrastructure, architecture, engineering & construction (AEC), heavy supply chains, and lot-size-1 manufacturing in shipbuilding, aerospace, and defense. They prioritize partnering with exceptional founders from "day zero," leading their first institutional rounds. They aim to be the first partner to visionary founders creating category-defining companies, understanding the unique adversities these companies face in their early years. Foundamental emphasizes a global, collaborative approach, leveraging local market expertise with cross-border knowledge transfer. They focus on deep domain expertise within their chosen verticals to provide valuable insights and support to their portfolio companies.
Futury Venture
Futury Capital invests in promising, high-growth technology companies across all stages, focusing on technology, responsibility, and entrepreneurial thinking. They prioritize companies creating real value for the key industries in the Rhein-Main and Saar regions of Germany. Their investment philosophy emphasizes sustainable, customer-focused, and entrepreneurial approaches, rather than short-term gains, image, or exit-fixation. They aim to build a sustainable ecosystem by connecting research, industry, and capital in the Frankfurt hub. Futury Capital believes that real values are the foundation for lasting value creation and seek to empower startups with a vision and ideas that shape the future. Futury Capital is deeply rooted in the Rhein-Main and Saar regions, providing access to a rich ecosystem. This includes access to talent from >100,000 students and >11,000 researchers, a supportive political environment, industry partners for co-creation and scaling, and co-investors like Headline & Angels for market access and follow-on funding rounds. They emphasize values that create trust, supported by a values-foundation, which lends credibility to their portfolio companies. The firm's approach is characterized by a focus on sustainability rather than purely profit-driven motives, customer focus instead of solely chasing image, and an entrepreneur-mindset instead of only concentrating on exits. They aim to nurture startups with a vision and ideas that define the future. They seek to support companies that will grow from the Rhein-Main area to throughout Europe.
HTGF | High-Tech Gründerfonds
HTGF (High-Tech Gründerfonds) is a pre-seed and seed investor focused on tech startups. They aim to back tech founders who are building the future, particularly in Germany, from the very beginning. Their mission is to strengthen the technological backbone of the German economy and create international market leaders. They achieve this by providing capital, access to a strong network of industry and science experts, experience in scaling startups, and deep tech know-how. They invest in companies across a variety of high-tech sectors, including industrial, climate, deep tech, life sciences, chemistry, and digital tech. They focus on tech startups in Germany and seek to help them to become successful and leading international companies.
High-Tech Gründerfonds
High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF) invests in tech founders with the ambition to shape the future. They focus on early-stage investments (pre-seed and seed) and provide a strong network in business and science, along with experience in scaling startups and deep tech know-how. Their mission extends beyond track record, aiming to strengthen the technological backbone of Germany and create international market leaders. HTGF invests in all major tech sectors, from software to hardware, including AI, Deep Tech, and Biotech. They emphasize supporting companies developing innovative technologies across industrial, climate, deep tech, life sciences, chemistry, and digital tech sectors. HTGF aims to provide not only capital but also expertise and support to navigate the challenges of the early phases of startup development. HTGF focuses on backing tech founders and helping them build the future early on. They are deeply involved in helping companies scale, utilizing their extensive network and tech expertise. Their stated mission is to sustainably strengthen Germany's position as a leading tech hub and facilitate the creation of global market leaders. HTGF's team comprises founders, visionaries, and individuals with experience in business and science, boasting over 300 years of combined investment experience, understanding the dynamics and challenges of early-stage companies. HTGF participates actively in the German startup ecosystem through news, stories, and events. They offer online seminars (FoundersClasses) and podcasts such as 'ZukunftsReady' and 'Founders Faces' to share insights and knowledge with founders. HTGF supports startups not only financially, but also by providing support in communication through press releases and logo downloads. The firm emphasizes the importance of people, recognizing the value of diversity and passion in tech.
Hitachi Ventures
Hitachi Ventures is a corporate venture capital firm that partners with founders building world-changing innovation. They provide partnership and access for ambitious founders transforming the world. With over $1B AUM, Hitachi Ventures aims to set new standards for corporate venture, fostering collaboration and growth within its portfolio companies. They focus on supporting builders bold enough to explore uncharted territories and invest in individuals crazy enough to reimagine climate, energy, and industry. The firm appears to invest across Digital, Industrial, and Climate Tech. They offer support beyond just capital, aiming to be a strong ally for their portfolio companies. They look for founders combining relentless execution with clarity of thought on complex issues, valuing EQ over IQ in the long term and choosing teams based on these values. They focus on building lasting impact through their investments. Several members of the investment team bring unique experiences that are designed to foster strong connections with the founders they work with. Hitachi Ventures also leverages its expertise in deal structuring and strategic advisory work to offer advice on portfolio company matters and fund structuring and administration. Their collaborative approach involves productive partnerships with internal teams, external stakeholders, and portfolio companies, reflecting a philosophy that the most successful outcomes emerge from inclusive dialogue and shared strategic vision.
Hubraum
Hubraum is the tech incubator of Deutsche Telekom, focusing on fostering innovation transfer and creating business opportunities by connecting startups, developers, ecosystem partners, and Deutsche Telekom. Their strategy involves offering access to cutting-edge innovation labs in Berlin and Krakow, equipped with telco assets like 5G tech, connectivity APIs, and Wi-Fi Sensing. They run various programs like the Security Co-Creation Program, Tangible Tomorrow, and the First Mover API Program to support startups. Hubraum also provides physical workspaces with amenities and access to tech expertise. They actively showcase successful collaborations with startups, highlighting how they accelerate growth and facilitate market entry.