The goal of Germany’s $1 billion deeptech and climate tech fund is to close the post-Series B funding gap in Europe by 2024 by starting to support growth stage firms.
The DeepTech & Climate Fonds (DTCF), which was established in 2023, made six investments in its first year, primarily in early-stage businesses. These included the wastewater solution Membion, the 3D printing company Xolo, and the quantum computing startup Kipu Quantum.
However, Elisabeth Schrey, managing director of DTCF and a former venture capitalist at btov Partners and Matterwave Ventures, says the organisation will now concentrate on supporting more growth stage firms.
“We aim to strategically position ourselves in later stage investments, where there is a gap in the market, particularly for asset-heavy technologies and those with a significant requirement for external financing,” the spokesperson states.
“This year, our main goal is to enable large European rounds.”
Since its establishment in February 2023, Germany’s $1 billion Deep Tech and Climate Tech Fund (DTCF) has made six investments in the tech sector.
Six investments have been made by the DTCF since its founding in February 2023.
Advocates for technology have long lamented the lack of growth-stage capital available in Europe. European deeptech startups frequently have to solicit non-European investors from the US or Asia in order to secure financing beyond Series B. This implies that Europe loses out on these businesses’ success and increases the likelihood of them departing the continent for other ecosystems.
Apart from the DTCF, the German government launched a $1 billion fund of funds in the previous year to assist European and German venture capital firms in writing larger checks.
