BACKED VC
BACKED VC is a London-based, FCA-regulated seed-stage venture capital fund founded in 2016 that leads $500K–$5M rounds in frontier-technology founders across Europe and the US, with 100 portfolio companies, six unicorns and a $100M Fund III.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2016
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What BACKED VC does
BACKED VC (legal entity: Backed LLP) is a London-headquartered, FCA-regulated seed-stage venture capital fund founded in 2016 by Andre de Haes and Alex Brunicki. The firm invests in pre-seed and seed founders building frontier-technology companies across Europe and, increasingly, the US, with a stated focus on AI-native therapeutics, blockchain and banking infrastructure, and manufacturing automation. Backed typically leads rounds with cheques of $500,000 to $5,000,000 and reserves follow-on capital through Series A. As of late 2025 the firm had invested in 100 portfolio companies, produced six unicorns (including Infinity Constellation, Thought Machine, Immutable, Sky Mavis and Meatable) and reported 21 companies with enterprise value above $100M.
The fund is anchored by a proprietary community and events platform that hosts more than 40 curated gatherings per year — including the flagship Founder Retreat and the LONDON BIO techbio community — drawing 4,800+ attendees in 2024. The platform is supplemented by a dedicated portfolio-company job board (talent.backed.vc, operated on Getro), an LP-facing investor portal (fundrbird.com), and a thought-leadership content hub (BACKED Insights). The team of approximately 13 includes co-founders/general partners, a COO, Finance Director, Heads of Brand, Portfolio and Special Projects, a Bio Venture Partner, and two investment managers covering biotech and fintech.
The business model is a classic venture fund: recurring management fees on assets under management (Backed 3 closed at $100M / £75M in November 2025, the firm's largest fund to date) plus performance-based carried interest on exits above the hurdle. The firm completed its first MIFIDPRU 8 regulatory disclosure in 2024, operates as a Small and Non-Interconnected (SNI) investment firm under UK FCA regulation, and is privately held as a UK limited liability partnership with no external parent. Revenue, GP economics and LP commitment terms are not publicly disclosed.
BACKED VC firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- BACKED VC
- Legal name
- Backed LLP
- Website
- https://backed.vc
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2016
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- BACKED VC is a London-based, FCA-regulated seed-stage venture capital fund founded in 2016 that leads $500K–$5M rounds in frontier-technology founders across Europe and the US, with 100 portfolio companies, six unicorns and a $100M Fund III.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
BACKED VC industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Seed-Stage Venture Capital
- akta.pro primary industry
- Secondary Venture Funds (VC Secondaries) (FSANAAAK)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Early-Stage Venture Capital (Pre-Seed/Seed) (FSANAAAA)
Keywords
Where BACKED VC is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices2 records
Markets served
BACKED VC business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Fund Management Fees: Recurring management fees charged on assets under management in Backed's venture capital funds (currently Fund III at $100M / £75M), providing recurring fee income over the fund lifecycle.
- Carried Interest (Carry): Performance-based carried interest on fund returns earned when portfolio exits exceed the fund's hurdle rate. This is the primary upside driver and aligns GP incentives with LP returns.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Multi-year contract | Pre-seed / Seed investment tickets averaging $500K–$5M |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Fund III commitment: $100M (£75M) raised |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels7 records
BACKED VC product offering
Product offeringCore offering
BACKED VC is a London-based, human-centric seed-stage venture capital firm that leads pre-seed and seed rounds in frontier technology companies across Europe and the US, with average ticket sizes of $500K–$5M. Its core offering is the Backed 3 fund ($100M closed November 2025), which invests in companies building in AI-native therapeutics, blockchain and banking infrastructure, and manufacturing automation, supported by a proprietary global events platform (40+ events/year), a talent job board (talent.backed.vc), and an LP investor portal (fundrbird.com).
Product overview
BACKED VC (Backed LLP) is a London-based seed-stage frontier-tech venture capital firm rather than a SaaS provider. Its core offering is its third fund (Backed 3, $100M), through which it invests $500K–$5M tickets in pre-seed and seed companies across Europe and the US. The fund sits at the centre of a platform of complementary offerings: the public BACKED Portfolio page listing its 100 investee companies, the BACKED Talent Network job board (talent.backed.vc) operated via Getro that surfaces portfolio company roles, the BACKED Investor Portal (fundrbird.com) for LPs, the BACKED Events Platform hosting 40+ founder/operator events per year, and the BACKED Insights thought leadership content series. The FCA-regulated investment advisory service is Backed LLP's core regulated activity, disclosed under MIFIDPRU 8. Together these components support BACKED's stated mission of "backing the bold" — taking European founders global through capital plus an in-person events and talent ecosystem.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Backed 3 (Fund III): The firm's third and current seed-stage fund, closed at $100M in November 2025.
- BACKED Founder & CEO Retreat
- LONDON BIO
Products and services
- Backed 3 Fund ($100M Seed Fund) The firm's third and current $100M seed-stage venture capital fund investing in pre-seed and seed companies across Europe and the US, with average ticket sizes of $500K–$5M, focused on AI-native therapeutics, blockchain and banking infrastructure, and manufacturing automation. LPs commit capital to this fund in exchange for management fees and carried interest.
- FCA-Regulated Investment Advisory Service Backed LLP's FCA-authorised and regulated investment advisory service, classified as a Small and Non-Interconnected (SNI) MIFIDPRU Investment Firm. The service supports the firm's fund management activities and operates under MIFIDPRU 8 disclosure requirements covering governance, risk management, and remuneration policies.
- BACKED Talent Network / Job Board A job board and talent network (talent.backed.vc) operated through Getro that lists job opportunities across Backed VC's portfolio companies. Job seekers can search roles, subscribe to job alerts, register for the Talent Network, and apply directly to positions at Backed's frontier-tech portfolio companies. Currently lists 252 jobs.
Quantifiable outcome
- 06 portfolio unicorns (unicorn-maker)
- +7 more outcomes
Companies that use BACKED VC
Customer profileNamed customers13 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
BACKED VC technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
BACKED VC partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Getro Inc.corePowers and operates the talent.backed.vc job board on behalf of Backed VC; provides job board infrastructure, candidate application flow, and cookies/analytics integration under its own terms.
- Amazon Web Services (AWS)coreProvides cloud infrastructure for Backed's technology stack (including the talent.backed.vc job board hosted by Getro and Backed's investor portal at fundrbird.com).
Scale indicators10 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
BACKED VC competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Index Ventures: European-headquartered, globally investing venture firm with offices in London, San Francisco and Geneva. Frequently co-invests with Backed (e.g. CoMind seed) and operates at multiple stages, making it a broader incumbent rather than direct seed competitor.
- Notion Capital: European B2B-focused VC investing from seed to growth with a fintech/SaaS tilt. Overlaps with Backed on banking infrastructure and fintech seed deals but typically writes cheques across multiple stages.
- Octopus Ventures: UK-based venture arm of Octopus Group investing from seed to growth. Larger and broader than Backed but competes for similar UK founders at the early stage.
Direct peers
- Connect Ventures: London-based seed VC investing in product-led European startups with comparable early-stage ticket sizes. Direct peer in stage and geography, though generally more consumer/internet focused than Backed's frontier-tech tilt.
- Speedinvest: Vienna-based seed-stage European VC with sector-specialist funds (fintech, deep tech, industrial tech) and comparable cheque sizes to Backed. Direct peer on sector specialisation and European seed deployment.
- Hoxton Ventures: London-based seed VC backing European tech startups with $500K–$5M cheques, very similar stage and ticket size to Backed. Direct peer competing for the same founder pool in the UK ecosystem.
- Earlybird Venture Capital: Berlin-based European seed and early-stage VC with deep tech, fintech and healthtech specialisations. Comparable stage and sector overlap with Backed's frontier-tech thesis across continental Europe.
- LocalGlobe: London-based seed-stage VC investing across Europe with comparable cheque sizes and stage focus. Closest direct peer in geography and stage, though generally more generalist than Backed's frontier-tech specialisation.
- Atomico: European venture firm founded by Skype's Niklas Zennström, investing across stages with deep European roots and a focus on mission-driven founders. Overlaps with Backed in European frontier-tech deal flow but typically operates at Series A and beyond.
- Air Street Capital: London-based AI-focused early-stage fund. Strongly comparable to Backed on the AI/frontier-tech thematic and stage, and a likely direct competitor for AI-native seed deals in Europe.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
BACKED VC social profiles
Digital presenceBACKED VC compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
BACKED VC financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
BACKED VC leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles13 records
BACKED VC funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
BACKED VC M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments124 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about BACKED VC
What does BACKED VC do?
BACKED VC is a London-based, human-centric seed-stage venture capital firm that leads pre-seed and seed rounds in frontier technology companies across Europe and the US, with average ticket sizes of $500K–$5M. Its core offering is the Backed 3 fund ($100M closed November 2025), which invests in companies building in AI-native therapeutics, blockchain and banking infrastructure, and manufacturing automation, supported by a proprietary global events platform (40+ events/year), a talent job board (talent.backed.vc), and an LP investor portal (fundrbird.com).
Is BACKED VC a public or private company?
BACKED VC is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was BACKED VC founded?
BACKED VC was founded in 2016. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is BACKED VC based?
BACKED VC is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does BACKED VC make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Fund Management Fees are the primary driver. The others are carried Interest (Carry).
Who are BACKED VC's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Index Ventures, Notion Capital and Octopus Ventures. Direct peers are Connect Ventures, Speedinvest, Hoxton Ventures, Earlybird Venture Capital, LocalGlobe, Atomico and Air Street Capital.
Does BACKED VC have an API?
No public API is recorded for BACKED VC.
What industry is BACKED VC in?
BACKED VC's product category is Seed-Stage Venture Capital. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSANAAAK, Secondary Venture Funds (VC Secondaries), with a secondary code of FSANAAAA, Early-Stage Venture Capital (Pre-Seed/Seed).