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25 Czech VCs Investing in CEE Tech Startups at Different Stages

Jan Davidek, Jan Stanek a Lukáš Grodl, Partners at Purple Ventures
Image credit: Jan Davidek, Jan Stanek and Lukáš Grodl, Partners at Purple Ventures
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Central and Eastern European countries have been in the spotlight of early-stage venture capitalists for a while now. With 26K startups, their combined enterprise value has grown by x2.4 in the past 5 years, from €89B in 2019 to €213B in 2023, according to Dealroom

The Czech Republic, one of the important countries in the region, is also on an upward trend. In 2023, the Czech startups raised €173.1M, placing the country on the fourth place in terms of capital raised in Eastern Europe. The top deals were closed by Keboola (€32M Series A), IP Fabric (€23M, Series B), Woltair (€20.5M, Series A). 

Getting to know which funds are still investing in the Czech Republic in 2024 may be particularly challenging. To give you some hints on who you should talk to if you are raising capital, we created a list of 20+ VC funds in the Czech Republic you should know. 

 

Top VC funds in Czech Republic for your startup

 

1. Credo Ventures

Industry focus: IT, Internet & Health

Ticket size: up to €5M

General partners: Ondřej Bartoš, Guillaume Fournier, Maciej Gnutek, Karolína Mrozková

Notable investments: ElevenLabs (unicorn), UiPath (exit)

Credo Ventures focuses on pre-seed to seed startups, managing €250 across their four funds. The VC is currently investing out of its fourth fund of €75M, opened in 2022 and backed by individual and institutional LPs. They look to support companies from their idea stage to the early signs of product market fit.

 

2. Czech Founders VC

Industry focus: Agnostic

Ticket size: €50-350K

Managing partners: Vít Horký, Václav Pavlečka, Ivan Kristeľ

Notable investments: NOLD, StreamBee

Founded in 2022 by a team of Czech and Slovak founders, Czech Founders VC is an early-stage venture capital firm that supports startups at their initial, pre-seed stage. The founders are also a part of the team behind the largest community of 500+ founders from the Czech Republic with global ambitions, Czech Founders.

 

3. DEPO Ventures

Industry focus: Agnostic

Ticket size: Undisclosed

Managing partners: Michal Ciffra, Petr Šíma

Notable investments: Talsec, Kardi AI, Neuronix AI (exit)

DEPO Ventures is an angel network and VC which focuses on pre-seed & seed stage tech startups. In 2022, DEPO Ventures opened its third and biggest angel fund in the CEE, aiming for €20M. They have invested over €10M, and, besides funding, also accelerate and support founders on their journey. 

 

4. Impulse Ventures

Industry focus: B2B, SaaS, Tech, Cybersecurity, e-Commerce

Ticket size: €500K-2M

Managing partner: Ondřej Tomek

Notable investments: Shoptet, Kiwi (exit)

Impulse Ventures partners with ambitious founders at seed, Series A & beyond. As a team of investors, founders, HR experts, and finance and product specialists, they are ready to work alongside the founders. Over the past decade, the VC has successfully built and exited companies with a combined value of over €650M.

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5. Inven Capital

Industry focus: Climate Tech

Ticket size: €2-30M

Managing partner: Petr Míkovec

Notable investments: Woltair, Cyberex (exit)

Inven Capital is a venture capital fund investing in climate tech startups across Europe and Israel. It is backed by a major European energy utility ČEZ, a.s. and by the European Investment Bank (EIB), having €500M at its disposal over two fund generations.

 

6. J&T Ventures

Industry focus: FinTech, PropTech, Retail, IoT/IoE, and Industry 4.0

Ticket size: €500K-2.5M

Managing partner: Adam Kočík

Notable investments: DayTrip, Apify

J&T Ventures is an early-stage venture capital fund that invests in promising seed and Series A startups. While their strategy is industry agnostic, they primarily focus on companies with proven product market fit. 

 

7. KAYA VC

Industry focus: FinTech, PropTech, Retail, IoT/IoE, and Industry 4.0

Ticket size: €100K-3M

General partners: Pavel Mucha, Tomáš Pacinda, Martin Rajcan, Tomáš Obrtač

Notable investments: Woltair, BetterStack

KAYA VC‘ mission is to support exceptional founding teams that shape industries and create enduring change sustainably, from studio projects, pre-seed, and Series A to follow-ons. KAYA was born from a financial group Enern Investments, representing a separate, VC-focused successor. 

 

8. Lighthouse Ventures

Industry focus: Agnostic

Ticket size: up to €2.3M

Managing partner: Michal Zálešák

Notable investments: ProductFruits, Persoo (exit)

Lighthouse Ventures is an early-stage venture capital focused on technology projects with a global vision. Lighthouse Ventures’ mission is to nurture inspiring projects that create strong value throughout their critical stage.  

 

9. Look AI Ventures

Industry focus: AI, Agnostic

Ticket size: €50K-1M

Managing partner at AI Startup Incubator: Martin Havlík

Notable investments: Trackbar, MotionsCloud

Look AI Ventures (LAIV) is the first investment fund in the Czech Republic that focuses exclusively on AI startups worldwide. LAIV follows up on the foundation and investment done by AI Startup Incubator (AISI), providing pre-seed and seed startups with smart money. 

 

10. Miton

Industry focus: AI, Crypto, Web3, E-commerce, GastroTech, Travel, Psychedelics 

Ticket size: Undisclosed

Managing partners: Tomáš Matějček, Milan Zemánek, Ondřej Raška, Michal Jirák

Notable investments: Rohlik.cz, Rossum 

Miton builds its philosophy on trust, respect, and collaboration. They invest their own money and focus on innovative digital B2C companies that help improve people’s lives, establishing businesses in cooperation with the founders or joining them in the early development phase. 

 

11. N1 VC

Industry focus: FinTech, InsurTech, AI, CustomerTech, e-Commerce, Travel

Ticket size: €50K-1.5M

Managing partners: Marek Moravec, Jaroslav Trojan

Notable investments: Hedepy, NutritionPro

N1 empowers Czech entrepreneurs in building global companies and focuses on investments in pre-seed and seed-stage startups. They aim to become a business investor as well as a partner. N1 VC launched a €35M fund in 2019, mainly backed by EIF.

 

12. Orbit Capital

Industry focus: Agnostic

Ticket size: €8-15M

Managing partners: Radovan Nesrsta, Wiktor Namysl

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Notable investments: Booksy, MEWS

Orbit Capital is an investment manager that supports tech & tech-enabled scale-ups in the CEE and DACH regions. It offers Growth Equity and Growth Debt financing, through two funds. Orbit Growth Equity invests in scale-ups aiming for global expansion. 

 

13. Presto Ventures

Industry focus: B2B, Tech

Ticket size: up to €3M

Managing partner: Přemysl Rubeš

Notable investments: Behavio, Keboola

Presto Ventures‘ mission is to empower CEE talent for faster progress, supporting startup founders in quick learning, business development, and growth. They focus on pre-seed and seed investments. Presto Ventures invests currently from its Fund II of  €30M, opening soon the third fund. 

 

14. Purple Ventures

Industry focus: Software

Ticket size: €200-750K

Managing partners: Jan Staněk, Jan Davídek

Notable investments: Choice, Tatum 

Purple Ventures invests smart, kind money into early-stage tech startups with initial revenue and global ambitions. Its Fund I was launched in 2018, in the amount of €15M, recently closing the second fund of €40M. 

 

15. PurposeTech

Industry focus: Health, Sustainability, Education

Ticket size: Undisclosed

Managing partner: Zdenek Fred Fous

Notable investments: Mamio, Femble

PurposeTech is a pre-seed VC fund that backs purpose-driven founders in CEE. They are comfortable to invest super early, once there is initial proof of concept. The fund has a close partnership with the Impact Hub Network, granting it access to a global network of experts, decision makers and innovators.

 

16. QQ Capital

Industry focus: Tech, Agnostic

Ticket size: up to €1M

Managing partner: Andrej Jančar

Notable investments: Staffino, Eseye

QQ Capital is an investment company helping companies at their pre-seed and seed stages to grow and find new investors or strategic partners. They seek investments and co-investments to support tech companies with unique potential and help shape a strategy for business growth.

 

17. Reflex Capital

Industry focus: Agnostic

Ticket size: Undisclosed

Managing partner: Ondřej Fryc

Notable investments: ePojisteni.cz (exit), Productboard (unicorn)

Reflex Capital is an early-stage investor backed by the team’s years of experience in management, e-Commerce, research, or investment, and other areas, with multiple million-dollar exits. Reflex Capital bases investment decisions on instincts and identifying the right people. They invest their own money and, as entrepreneurs themselves, focus on helping their founders grow ideas and personalities.

 

18. Rockaway Capital

Industry focus: e-Commerce, e-Travel, Media, FinTech, and Blockchain

Ticket size: Flexible

CEO: Jakub Havrlant

Notable investments: Gjirafa, BudgetBakers

Rockaway Capital group opened and became one of the main investors of their new Rockaway Ventures fund in 2022, targeting a size of €100M. Their focus is primarily on early-stage startups digitalizing traditional industries while following ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) principles.

 

19. Seed Starter ČS

Industry focus: Agnostic

Ticket size: Undisclosed

Managing partner: Tomáš Milota

Notable investments: Born Digital, Palm App

The investment fund Seed Starter ČS was established by one of the largest Czech banks, Česká spořitelna. The fund focuses on pre-seed and seed investments, aiming to back startups with long-term goals. Besides investment, Seed Starter ČS also offers boot camp and incubation programs.

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20. Soulmates Ventures

Industry focus: Sustainability

Ticket size: up to €1M

Managing partners: Hynek Sochor, Václav Gregor 

Notable investments: Kardi AI, Flowpay

Soulmates Ventures is a sustainability-focused investment fund investing in pre-seed and seed startups with a current portfolio value of €214M. As the only green investing accelerator in Central Europe, Soulmates Ventures specializes and seeks investments in air, water, energy, circular economy, food, agriculture, mobility, education, and healthcare solutions.

 

 21. STARTGUIDE VC

Industry focus: primarily B2C: Digital transformation, DeepTech, AI

Ticket size: €50-200K

Managing partner: Petr Jahn

Notable investments: Forloop.ai, Campiri

A team of experienced entrepreneurs founded STARTGUIDE VC to support young teams at their pre-seed and seed stages. Offering a range of support and resources, STARTGUIDE VC combines investment with mentorship, strategic guidance, and access to our extensive network of industry experts and resources.

 

22. Tensor Ventures

Industry focus: AI, IoT, Blockchain, BioTech, Quantum Computing

Ticket size: up to $2M

Managing partners: Martin Drdul, Roman Smola, 

Notable investments: Tatum, Veracity Protocol

Tensor Ventures is a venture capital fund investing in Deep Tech and sustainable innovation startups at seed to Series A stages. They offer an active investment approach, unique opportunity sourcing, and efficient management.  

 

23. Tilia Impact Ventures

Industry focus: Impact/Agnostic

Ticket size: €300k-1.5M

Managing partners: Silke Horáková, Petr Vítek

Notable investments: Munch, NOLD

As the first social impact fund in the Czech Republic, Tilia Impact Ventures focuses on building social enterprises with sustainable and scalable business models aligned with significant societal impact. The venture capital fund focuses on pre-seed and seed investments and provides business, management, and impact consulting.

 

24. V-Sharp

Industry focus: Agnostic

Ticket size: up to €1M

Managing partner: Matěj Zabadal

Notable investments: Vocalls, Aimful  

V-Sharp was founded in 2015 and has developed several own businesses and start-ups since then. In 2021 they created V-Sharp Venture Studio actively helping other start-ups with their funding and development. 

 

25. Y Soft Ventures

Industry focus: B2B, IoT, Cybersecurity, Big Data & Analytics, Augmented & Virtual Reality

Ticket size: Undisclosed 

Managing partner: Miloš Sochor

Notable investments: Dronetag, VRgineers

Y Soft Ventures is a corporate arm of a multinational Czech hardware & software company Y Soft, investing in people who build innovative B2B startups with global potential. They provide their portfolio companies with capital, resources, and expertise to accelerate their entry into global markets.

NB1: The organizations are displayed in alphabetical order.

NB2: The information from this article is from public sources or the representative’s answer. If you notice a mistake or have feedback for us, contact Elena on LinkedIn or at [email protected].

 

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https://therecursive.com/author/elenaghinita/

Elena is a Startup Community Editor at The Recursive. In other words, she keeps close to the startup ecosystem in CEE and makes their stories heard. She creates educational and informational content about innovation, funding and startup growth.