What Connect Ventures does

Connect Ventures LLP is a London-based European micro-venture capital firm founded in 2012 that invests in pre-seed and seed-stage product companies. The firm operates a partner-only investment model — comprising two Managing Partners (Pietro Bezza, Sitar Teli) and one General Partner (Rory Stirling) — with each partner underwriting only two to three investments per year. The firm leads or co-leads rounds between $500,000 and $5 million across AI, cybersecurity, deep tech, data & infrastructure, fintech, health, and vertical networks. Connect Ventures is publicly described as a partnership between Creative Artists Agency (CAA) and NEA, and it is authorised and regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA number 582584) as a UK limited liability partnership (company number OC367566).

The firm's core offering extends beyond capital to a community platform branded 'Built By Few', which includes a flagship annual Product Summit in London (200+ attendees), international satellite editions across Ghent, Milan, Barcelona, and Berlin, a curated Slack-based peer community of 160+ portfolio founders, peer coaching circles, an annual founder retreat (94% NPS in 2022), and a 'Connect the Dots' thought-leadership newsletter. Internally, the firm runs a Notion-based resource hub for portfolio founders and employs a proprietary investment framework called 'Minimum Viable Category Design' developed by Pietro Bezza to identify founders building new market categories. The team includes a CFO (Mark Pettit), Head of Marketing (Claire Walker, appointed October 2025), Head of Finance (Amira Naik), Operations Manager (Rosie Cipolla), and Dealflow Ops Analyst (Sai Tatireddy).

Connect Ventures generates revenue through standard VC fund-manager economics: management fees on committed/invested fund capital plus carried interest and equity returns on portfolio exits. Notable portfolio outcomes include TrueLayer's path to unicorn status (>$1 billion valuation, $130 million Series C led by Tiger and Stripe), participation in Typeform's $135 million Series C, acquisition of portfolio company Zash, and retirement of Ambient. The firm invests across the UK (HQ), Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and selectively in the US, but is self-described as a 'Europe-wide' investor based out of London.

Name

Connect Ventures

Legal name

Connect Ventures LLP

Website

https://connectventures.co

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Connect Ventures is a London-based European micro-VC firm founded in 2012 that leads and co-leads pre-seed and seed rounds of $500k–$5m in product-led companies across AI, cybersecurity, fintech, health, and deep tech, supported by a 160+ founder community and the Built By Few summit series.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Seed-stage Venture Capital

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Sector-Focused Venture Capital (Vertical Specialists) (FSANAAAD)

Keywords

• Seed-stage venture capital
• Pre-seed venture investing
• Product-led startup funding
• European micro-VC fund
• Founder community platform

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Others, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Fund Management Fees: Connect Ventures LLP is a UK-limited liability partnership regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA number 582584), authorised as a fund manager for European micro-VC funds investing in internet and software startups at the seed stage. Generates management fees as typical of a fund manager.
2. Carried Interest & Equity Returns: As a seed-stage VC firm, Connect Ventures holds equity stakes across its portfolio and earns carried interest on successful exits (e.g., TrueLayer unicorn status $1B+ valuation, Zash acquired, Ambient retired). Follows winner pattern — invested in all four subsequent TrueLayer rounds via main fund and SPVs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Connect Ventures is a London-based, FCA-authorised European micro-VC fund manager that leads or co-leads pre-seed and seed rounds between $500k and $5m in product-led companies across AI, cybersecurity, deep tech, data & infrastructure, fintech, health, and vertical networks. The firm pairs capital with high-engagement partner support, in-house product advisory, and a curated founder community anchored by its Built By Few Product Summit series. Connect Ventures monetises through typical VC fund economics — management fees plus carried interest on equity stakes across its 160+ company portfolio.

Product overview

Connect Ventures is a London-based micro-VC fund manager rather than a software company, so its 'products' are a unified investment offering composed of: (1) the core Connect Ventures Fund — a partner-only, Europe-wide venture fund that leads/co-leads $500k–$5m pre-seed and seed rounds in product companies across AI, cybersecurity, deep tech, data & infrastructure, fintech, health, and vertical networks; (2) Built By Few — the firm's flagship Product Summit event series (annual London flagship plus international editions in Ghent, Milan, Barcelona, and Berlin) that complements the fund with curated founder community programming; (3) the Connect Portfolio / Companies showcase of 160+ backed product-led companies; and (4) Connect Opinions & Newsletter — the firm's thesis-driven content and newsletter program authored by partners Pietro Bezza, Sitar Teli, Rory Stirling, Claire Walker, and others. Together these make up a single integrated platform for backing and supporting European product founders from pre-seed through Series A.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Built By Few: Connect Ventures' flagship annual Product Summit for European product founders, makers, and investors; expanded into a multi-city European event series (London, Ghent, Milan, Barcelona, Berlin).

Products and services

• Connect Ventures Fund A Europe-wide, partner-only, high-conviction micro-VC fund that has been investing in pre-seed and seed stage product companies since 2012, based in London. The firm leads or co-leads rounds between $500k and $5m across categories including AI, cybersecurity, deep tech, data & infrastructure, fintech, health, and vertical networks, and supports portfolio companies from pre-product through product-market fit.
• Built By Few Product Summit Connect Ventures' flagship Product Summit series bringing together founders, makers, and investors building and backing Europe's defining product companies, with annual flagship events in London plus international satellite editions (Ghent, Milan, Barcelona, Berlin) and recurring lightning-strike founder gatherings.

Quantifiable outcome

• 94% NPS at 2022 founder retreat
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, minor and moderate.

• Creative Artists Agency (CAA)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCreative Artists Agency (CAA) is a foundational partner of Connect Ventures — the firm is publicly described as 'a partnership between CAA and NEA'. CAA co-leads Connect Ventures' investments in consumer-facing and creator-economy companies, including the $40M Music AI Series A.
• NEA (New Enterprise Associates)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerNEA is a foundational partner of Connect Ventures — the firm is publicly described as 'a partnership between CAA and NEA'. NEA co-leads Connect Ventures' investments, including the $40M Music AI Series A alongside monashees.
• PitchdriveminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPitchdrive co-hosted Supernova Pre-Drinks event with Connect Ventures (alongside Frontline and AWS) as part of the firm's Belgian ecosystem engagement during the Supernova conference in Antwerp.
• FrontlineminorGTM or Marketing PartnerFrontline co-hosted Supernova Pre-Drinks event with Connect Ventures (alongside Pitchdrive and AWS) during the Belgian Supernova conference in Antwerp.
• AWSminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAWS co-hosted Supernova Pre-Drinks event with Connect Ventures (alongside Pitchdrive and Frontline) during the Belgian Supernova conference in Antwerp; AWS also featured as a speaker (Diana Alvarado) at Built By Few 2025 London.
• Aikido SecuritymoderateGTM or Marketing PartnerAikido Security (a Connect Ventures portfolio company co-led seed in 2023) hosted the first international Built By Few event at their Ghent office for the Belgian/Benelux product ecosystem gathering.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• LocalGlobe (Latitude): London-based pre-seed and seed investor founded by Saul and Robin Klein with a Europe-wide remit and partner-led model; the closest direct peer to Connect Ventures given overlapping geography, stage, and conviction-led thesis.
• Seedcamp: London-headquartered European seed-stage venture firm with a broad portfolio across fintech, SaaS, AI, and consumer — directly comparable to Connect in stage, geography, and product-founder orientation.
• Notion Capital: London-based B2B SaaS-focused venture firm investing across Europe at seed and Series A; closely comparable to Connect's B2B software emphasis and EMEA focus (and notably the prior employer of Connect's Head of Marketing).
• Point Nine Capital: Berlin-based seed-stage SaaS and B2B investor with a pan-European portfolio; directly comparable to Connect in stage focus, sector emphasis, and partner-led conviction model.
• Speedinvest: Vienna-based European sector-focused seed VC with specialist funds across fintech, deep tech, SaaS, and consumer — comparable to Connect in stage, geography, and sector specialisation.
• Hoxton Ventures: London-based early-stage venture firm investing across Europe in technology companies at seed and Series A; directly comparable in stage and geography with a similar high-conviction partner-led approach.
• Frontline Ventures: London/Europe B2B SaaS seed investor with strong Irish and UK ties; directly comparable to Connect in stage focus, B2B SaaS orientation, and European-only investment remit.

Broad incumbents

• Index Ventures: London/San Francisco/Geneva-headquartered multi-stage venture firm with active seed programmes across European tech — a broader incumbent that overlaps with Connect at seed but operates across stages and geographies.
• Atomico: London-based European technology venture firm founded by Skype's Niklas Zennström investing across stages; comparable European tech thesis but operates at meaningfully larger check sizes than Connect's micro-VC focus.
• Balderton Capital: London-based European venture firm investing from seed to growth with a B2B emphasis; comparable European early-stage thesis (and former employer of Connect's CFO), though Balderton operates at broader stage and check-size ranges.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/connect_v?lang=en
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/connect-ventures

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments154 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Connect Ventures