It's all about trust - especially in trustless architecture
We’re an equal partnership driven by trust, designed to challenge consensus. No politics, no egos, just complementary strengths and a shared focus: backing the best founders building extraordinary companies.
Sagar Barvaliya
Languages
Gujarati, Hindi, English, German
Based in
Munich
Sagar is one of those people that make new friends every day. Deeply passionate about the potential of blockchain technology, he is our master networker creating valuable allies, helpful introductions for our portfolio companies, and strong connections within the web3 community. In addition, his multinational upbringing and engineering background make him feel at ease in almost any environment.
Affiliations
SVKM'S NMIMS, Technische Universitat Dresden, Porsche, Techstars, Blockrocket, ETH Munich
Ben Horvath
Languages
German, English
Based in
Berlin and Singapore
Ben, a lifelong gamer and sci-fi enthusiast, knows what it's like to be founder. His former startup, matching people based on their character, may not have achieved unicorn status. Still, it taught him valuable psychometrics skills that we use to support and benefit our founder teams every day. He is committed to both grand innovation and constantly improving the small details of our work with startups on a daily basis. He is also building lots of AI into our tech stack to become even better at deal sourcing and evaluating.
Affiliations
Otto Beisheim School of Management, Rocket Internet, Frankfurt Blockchain Center, ITSA, Blockrocket
Wolfgang Männel
Languages
German, English, French
Based in
Frankfurt am Main
Wolfgang worked in consulting, PE/VC, and startups in industries ranging from telco, construction, retail, and consumer goods in functions like IT, supply chain, sales & marketing, and strategy across Europe, the US, China, and India. Having witnessed many economic and technological hype cycles in his 35-year career, he has a good grasp on the sometimes long path to mass adoption and the critical triggers required to get there. He has made the experience that women and migrants often make the toughest founders.
Affiliations
European Business School, Capgemini Invent, Mars, 3i Group, Munich Innovation Group
Marcel Uhlmann
Languages
German, English
Based in
Munich
Blockchain technology had a profound impact on Marcel's life. With over two decades of working alongside independent asset managers within Germany's foremost B2B banks, he possesses an intimate understanding of the industry. Marcel was there from the very beginning of Decentralized Finance, and ever since, the potential of distributed ledger technologies for a broad array of use cases has been a central element in his professional and personal journey.
Affiliations
HTWD, Immutable Insight, VvBank, Baader, BNP Paribas
An outstanding group of professionals who go beyond being ‘just’ investors in our fund, bringing energy, passion, and a deep commitment to our founders and our mission.
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Dr. Burkhard Bonsels
Languages
English, German
Based in
Frankfurt am Main
Burkhard is an esteemed investor, board member, and trusted advisor renowned for his exceptional contributions to innovative companies, private equity funds, and family offices - the result of a remarkable career as managing partner of Quadriga and principal at BCG. He has an insatiable curiosity for understanding the societal impact of technology and supporting ambitious founders spearheading transformative change.
Affiliations
Technische Universitat Darmstadt, Universitat Passau, Boston Consulting Group, Quadriga Capital, Athanor Capital
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Peter Cullom
Languages
English, German
Based in
Frankfurt am Main
Peter is a veteran venture capital investor with thirty years of experience as a GP manager, angel, and LP investor. He has invested directly and indirectly in over 500 start-ups through four significant business cycles of growth and recession. Peter is a trusted advisor for many venture capital funds, and we are very fortunate to call him an esteemed advisor and a close friend.
Affiliations
University of Bradford, Louvain School of Management, pwc, 3i Group, ECM, Investec, Cullom Capital
Maik Fechner
Languages
English, Swedish
Based in
Frankfurt am Main
With over 20 years of experience at JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, and Ninety One, Maik is the seasoned pro you want in your corner. He's all about backing creative, mission-driven founders because he knows they're the ones who make the magic happen. Maik firmly believes that smart resource use and cutting-edge tech is the recipe for long-term success and a brighter future.
Affiliations
Ninety One, Goldman Sachs, J.P Morgan
Peter Kleinschmidt
Languages
German, English, French, Italian
Based in
Frankfurt am Main
Peter brings 30 years of experience in auditing and advising financial institutions within the financial services industry. At PwC, he specialized in IT and digitalization alongside governance, risk management, and compliance. Since retiring, Peter has focused on his roles as a business angel and limited partner, investing in emerging technologies. He also contributes as a non-executive director on supervisory boards.
Affiliations
Karlsruher Intitut fur Technologie, pwc
Ulrich Spindler
Languages
German, English
Based in
Munich
Ulrich, a successful entrepreneur and founder of a mail-order pharmacy, knows firsthand the challenges and sacrifices that come with starting a business. His experience makes him well-equipped to support our startup teams and understand their passion and determination to succeed. In addition to his business ventures, Ulrich is an active angel investor dedicated to fostering the growth of talented founders.
Affiliations
University of Mannheim, KPMG, Medpex, Zur Rose Group
Harald Zapp
Languages
German, English
Based in
Frankfurt am Main
Harald is a serial tech entrepreneur, business angel, and ICT & IoT innovator who envisions democratized technologies revolutionizing industries. In 2016, he founded Next Big Thing AG (NBT), a Berlin-based venture studio focused on building IoT companies using machine learning, AI, and blockchain technology. With over 25 years of experience in IT and telecommunications, including co-founding relayr and Weeve, he aims to position Germany as a digital hotspot for data-driven B2B business models while actively promoting IoT initiatives and advising on Industry 4.0.
Affiliations
NBT, weeve, bitkom, cisco
Exceptional founders themselves, investors, and legal minds. We're proud to have them as our advisors.
Alex Höptner
Languages
German, English, French
Based in
Frankfurt am Main
Ever since entering the crypto space in 2013, Alex has been a strong advocate of the potential of tokenization for financial markets. With his experience at Deutsche Börse, as CEO at Börse Stuttgart and later at BitMEX, he played a pivotal role in launching the BISON app, which served as a gateway to Bitcoin for many newcomers. Alex's visionary mindset has always driven him to think big to explore the vast possibilities of crypto.
Affiliations
Goethe Universität, Duke University, Hochschule Reutlingen, Deutsche Börse Group, Börse Stuttgart, BitMEX, Euwax
Mirko Ross
Languages
German, English
Based in
Stuttgart
Mirko is an internationally recognized entrepreneur, expert, speaker, publicist, and researcher in the field of Cyber Security and the Internet of Things. At the age of 14, he began investigating vulnerabilities in IT systems. However, instead of pursuing a career as a hacker, he decided to align with the law. In 2018, he founded asvin.io with the goal of enhancing cybersecurity in industry and AI applications. His work has earned him numerous national and international awards.
Affiliations
twinds, Dark Cryptonite, asvin.io
Alireza Siadat
Languages
German, English
Based in
Frankfurt am Main
Always curious to understand the legal ramifications of blockchain technology, Alireza is the go-to lawyer for regulatory law within the financial sector. As a highly trusted advisor to many crypto companies and investors, he brings a refreshing can-do attitude, offering workable solutions that are supported by both regulators and businesses in the emerging Web3 world.
Affiliations
The University of Nottingham, Justus-Liebig Universitat Giessen, Wolters Kluwer, Annerton, Deliotte
Driven by empathy and relentlessness, we look beyond surface-level presentations to uncover what truly fuels founders—their passions, challenges, immigrant backgrounds, and often crazy childhoods.
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