SpeedInvest launches €50m second fund

Harriet Bailey
09 October 2014

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Austrian venture capital firm SpeedInvest has launched its second fund, targeting €50m.

The fund has been launched in partnership with start-up platform Pioneers and business angel Johann Hansmann.

SpeedInvest CEO Oliver Holle hinted the fund would be holding its first close by the end of 2014.

The fund, which aims to bridge the gap between a start-up incubator and a seed investor, will have a typical lifespan of 10 years. Not only will SpeedInvest be providing early-stage financing, but entrepreneurs from Pioneers will work closely with individual start-ups to get their ideas off the ground.

SpeedInvest II will have a flexible exit strategy, working with both growth-stage VCs and strategic investors. Sixteen entrepreneurs and investors manage the fund and its investments.

According to unquote" data, SpeedInvest's previous fund is a €10m early-stage super angel fund that held its first close in September 2011. It received backing from 30 business angels and aims to commit up to €500,000 in each company. It currently has 20 active investments.

Investors
The vehicle has already received a cornerstone commitment of approximately 20% of the fund from a regional bank.

Minimum commitments for private investors are €300,000, while institutional investors have to commit at least €1m in order to access the fund. The three founders will commit between 2-5% of the fund's final total.

Investments
The vehicle will focus on investing in German-speaking Europe and eastern Europe as far as Turkey, allocating roughly two thirds of its investments to the region. The remainder will be used for select investments in the rest of Europe.

It will initially bring between €100,000-500,000 to the table, with second round investments between €1-2m. The fund aims to commit to 10 companies per year, with 40-50 investments expected overall.

SpeedInvest's second fund is interested in companies in the digital space field, particularly in fintech and IP-driven start-ups centred on engineering.

People
Oliver Holle is CEO of SpeedInvest. Andreas Tschas is co-founder and managing director of Pioneers. Johann Hansmann is a business angel and founder of the Austrian Angel Investors Association.