Innovationsstarter Fonds Hamburg backs Yoints

The capital injection is earmarked for further expansion of the company's research and development department.

Innovationsstarter usually commits €500,000 for a 15% stake if investing alone but, if investing alongside another backer, commits on a pro-rata basis.

The venture capital firm drew capital from its €12m vehicle. The Authority for Economics, Transport and Innovation of the Free State of Hamburg and the European Fund for Regional Development contributed €6m each to the fund.

Company
Founded in 2011 in Hamburg, Yoints specialises in location-based loyalty solutions for retailers. Since its foundation, the company has developed a retail app using iBeacon technology and the corresponding Android-based system. It launched last month in more than 300 stores in Hamburg, including Adidas, BoConcept and Vodafone.

Customers collect points by downloading the app and scanning the barcodes of selected products at participating stores. The points can then be used against rewards in the Yoints app, such as store vouchers.

People
Heiko Milde is the managing director of Innovationsstarter Fonds Hamburg.

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