VC investor IBB Ventures launches €120 million capital funds targeting Berlin start-ups
IBB Ventures, a venture capital investor in Berlin, is at the start with the fifth fund generation: in addition to EUR 90 million for the continuation of the existing VC fund technology and VC fund creative industries, the new impact VC fund will receive EUR 30 million EUR.
Since the start of the second generation of funds in 2004, these have been co-financed with funds from the European Union from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) .
The development of the start-up ecosystem is a real success story for the city. Berlin has been the undisputed leader in Germany for years:
Every second euro invested in start-ups in Germany last year went to Berlin companies. Among the European metropolises, Berlin, along with London and Paris, has maintained its place among the top 3 locations for start-ups in Europe for years. IBB Ventures has accompanied and supported this development since it was founded in 1997.
Roger Bendisch, Managing Director, IBB Ventures: "Even in economically turbulent times, IBB Ventures offers an important equity offering for Berlin start-ups.”
From the very beginning, IBB Ventures relied on cooperation with private financing partners such as business angels and private venture capital funds when financing Berlin start-ups. This enabled the funds made available for Berlin founders to be leveraged significantly. More than 1.8 billion euros in equity flowed to over 260 Berlin start-ups, of which 275 million euros were invested by IBB Ventures as lead, co-lead or co-investor. Based on the leverage effect achieved so far - on average, more than 5 additional euros could be mobilized by private investors for every public euro invested - the new generation of funds can probably provide more than EUR 700 million for innovative Berlin companies.
In addition to the ERDF funds, the new fund generation is expected to be fed mainly from returns and income from exits from the previous fund generations. A number of founders, for whom IBB Ventures has accompanied the successful exit of their start-up, are now active as business angels themselves.
Marco Zeller, Managing Director of IBB Ventures: "The expansion of the range of funds to include an impact VC fund represents another important milestone for IBB Ventures. We also want to make a significant contribution to the further expansion of the impact investing ecosystem."
The Impact VC fund is aimed specifically at start-ups whose business activities are not only aimed at economic success, but also make a measurable, positive contribution to overcoming the most pressing social challenges. The focus is on the 17 global sustainability goals (Sustainable Development Goals / SDGs) defined by the United Nations. They include the areas of poverty reduction, health, education, clean and affordable energy, innovation and infrastructure, sustainable cities and communities, and climate protection.
The investment phase of the new generation of funds runs until the end of 2029.
