IBB Ventures
IBB Ventures is a Berlin-based venture capital firm providing Pre-Seed to Series A funding exclusively to Berlin-headquartered startups across Tech, Creative, and Impact sectors, backed by €140M in active funds financed by IBB and the EU ERDF.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1997
- HeadquartersBerlin, Germany
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What IBB Ventures does
IBB Ventures is the venture capital arm of IBB Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, part of the IBB Group (Investitionsbank Berlin), and operates as a publicly-backed early-stage investor with an exclusive Berlin-headquartered deployment mandate. Founded in 1997 and headquartered at Bundesallee 210, Berlin, the firm manages three specialized VC funds — the Tech Fund (Healthcare, Industrial Tech, Software & IT), the Creative Fund (Consumer Tech, D2C, brands), and the €30M Impact Fund (in investing since 2022) — together with the newly launched B# (be sharp) DeepTech pre-seed fund (€10M, October 2025), bringing combined fund capital to approximately €140M. Investment capital is sourced 50% from Investitionsbank Berlin/State of Berlin and 50% from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), and the firm is therefore structured as a public-mandate reinvestment vehicle rather than a return-maximizing private fund.
Across these vehicles IBB Ventures invests from Pre-Seed to Series A in Berlin-based startups, with disclosed ticket sizes of €100K–€400K at Pre-Seed (often via the B# fast lane), €200K–€1M at Seed/Series A, and a cumulative per-case cap of €4M (€6M exceptional) enabled by reserved follow-on capital. The firm operates a specialized ~18-person team organized by sub-sector with dedicated Investment Directors per focus area, supplemented by an open 'Apply for funding' inbox, bookable Typeform-based Office Hours, and a self-described 3-week average timeline from first contact to investment committee. To date, the firm has deployed over €300M across 310+ startups and reports 80+ successful exits, with portfolio outcomes such as Babbel (exited), Aignostics ($34M Series B, October 2024), mediaire (~€12M round, November 2024), Qdrant, Remerge, Ninox, Caya, and Yuno (€7M Series A, July 2025) anchoring the track record.
The revenue model is structurally a venture capital fund manager: the firm derives income from management fees on committed AUM and from equity realizations on portfolio exits, with stated policy of reinvesting realized returns into new fund vintages to support the next generation of Berlin founders rather than distributing profit to LPs. Distribution to portfolio companies occurs through three channels — a self-serve online apply page, inside-sales-style Office Hours conversations, and consortium/co-investor syndication alongside private investors such as 42Cap, Point Nine Capital, HTGF, b-to-v Partners, HV Holtzbrinck Ventures, 468 Capital, LBO France, and others. Geographic reach is intentionally restricted to Berlin-headquartered startups, with portfolio companies then scaling globally (e.g., Aignostics entering the U.S. market).
IBB Ventures firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- IBB Ventures
- Legal name
- IBB Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH
- Website
- https://ibbventures.de
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1997
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- IBB Ventures is a Berlin-based venture capital firm providing Pre-Seed to Series A funding exclusively to Berlin-headquartered startups across Tech, Creative, and Impact sectors, backed by €140M in active funds financed by IBB and the EU ERDF.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
IBB Ventures industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Venture Capital
- NAICS
- Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394)
- SIC
- Investment Advice (6282)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Early-Stage Venture Capital (Series A/B) (FSANAAAB)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Capital Raising Advisory (Debt/Equity/Private Capital) (BPAHADAG)
Keywords
Where IBB Ventures is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Berlin
- HQ country
- Germany
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
IBB Ventures business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Capital gains from successful exits: Primary revenue driver via equity realizations from portfolio exits (trade sales, secondary sales, IPOs). 80+ successful exits to date. Returns are reinvested into new fund vintages rather than distributed as LP profit, reflecting the firm's public-mandate reinvestment cycle.
- Public co-funding from IBB, State of Berlin, and EU ERDF: Capital base funded 50/50 by Investitionsbank Berlin (IBB) and the State of Berlin, and 50% by the European Regional Development Fund (EFRE/ERDF), administered by the State of Berlin. Each investment is backed through this blended public funding model across the €90M Tech/Creative VC funds, €30M Impact fund, and €10M B# DeepTech pre-seed fund.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Pre-Seed ticket |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Seed / Series A ticket |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Maximum investment per case (cumulative across rounds) |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels7 records
IBB Ventures product offering
Product offeringCore offering
IBB Ventures is a Berlin-based early-stage venture capital firm that provides equity investment tickets (Pre-Seed to Series A, €100K–€4M+ per case) to Berlin-headquartered startups through four specialized funds: the Tech Fund, Creative Fund, Impact Fund, and B# Pre-Seed Fund. The firm supplements capital with operational partnership, sector-specific Investment Directors, and an Office Hours consultation channel for prospective founders. All investment capital is sourced 50% from IBB/State of Berlin and 50% from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).
Product overview
IBB Ventures operates a multi-fund architecture rather than a single unified product: three specialized VC funds — the Tech Fund (Healthcare, Industrial Tech, Software & IT), the Creative Fund (Consumer Tech, D2C, brands), and the Impact Fund (social/environmental ventures) — together with the dedicated B# (be sharp) Pre-Seed Fund for DeepTech founders, all backed by Investitionsbank Berlin (IBB) and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). Across these funds they invest from Pre-Seed to Series A in Berlin-based startups (€100–400K Pre-Seed, €200K–1M Seed/Series A, up to €4–6M per case) and supplement capital with the Office Hours consultation service, providing expertise and network access to founders.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- B# (be sharp): IBB Ventures' dedicated pre-seed fast lane for DeepTech founders in Berlin, launched in October 2025 with a €10 million fund. Operated via bsharp.vc.
- VC Fonds Technologie
Products and services
- Tech Fund One of three IBB Ventures specialized VC funds, backing Berlin-based technology startups across Healthcare, Industrial Tech, and Software & IT with ticket sizes from €100K–€400K at Pre-Seed and €200K–€1M at Seed/Series A.
- Creative Fund One of three IBB Ventures specialized VC funds, investing in consumer-focused Berlin-based ventures across Consumer Tech, D2C, and brands with global scaling potential in everyday life, learning, and connection.
- Impact Fund Impact VC fund with a volume of €30 million in the investing stage since 2022, providing capital to Berlin-based ventures tackling social and environmental challenges.
- B# (be sharp) Pre-Seed Fund IBB Ventures' dedicated pre-seed fast lane for Berlin's DeepTech founders with a bias to action, committing €10 million to support founders with strong digital backbone in healthcare, industrial tech, and software & IT.
Quantifiable outcome
- €300M total funding deployed across all rounds
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use IBB Ventures
Customer profileNamed customers32 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
IBB Ventures technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
IBB Ventures partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators9 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
IBB Ventures competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- UVC Partners: Munich/Berlin-based early-stage VC investing in B2B tech, industrial tech, and deep tech. Comparable to IBB Ventures in tech vertical focus, German-speaking market presence, and pre-seed to Series A ticket range.
- Coparion: German venture capital firm with public-fund backing (ERP/ERP-Mittelstandsfonds) investing in technology and life sciences startups. Closely comparable to IBB Ventures in funding source structure and German early-stage focus.
- High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF): Germany's leading public-private early-stage VC, backed by the German federal government and industry, investing across technology sectors at seed stage. Highly comparable to IBB Ventures in public-mandate model and ticket size, though operating nationally rather than Berlin-only.
- btov Partners: European venture capital firm with a Digital and Industrial Tech focus, active in Berlin DACH investments. Comparable to IBB Ventures in early-stage tech focus and German-speaking market presence, with similar ticket sizes at pre-seed and seed.
Broad incumbents
- Speedinvest: Pan-European early-stage VC investing across FinTech, Climate Tech, Digital Health, and other verticals, with a Berlin office. Comparable to IBB Ventures in Berlin tech investment focus and stage coverage, but operating with significantly larger fund sizes across multiple geographies.
- Earlybird Venture Capital: One of Europe's largest independent early-stage VCs, investing across technology verticals from Berlin and other European hubs. Comparable to IBB Ventures in Berlin presence and tech vertical focus, but with much larger fund sizes and pan-European reach.
Regional players
- Bayern Kapital: Bavaria's state-backed venture capital arm, investing in technology and life sciences startups from seed to growth. Operates a regional mandate analogous to IBB Ventures' Berlin-only focus, making it a structural peer in the German public-VC ecosystem.
- Fraunhofer Ventures: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft's venture arm, supporting spin-offs and startups commercializing Fraunhofer research, particularly in deep tech. Comparable to IBB Ventures' B# DeepTech focus and Berlin footprint via Fraunhofer institutes (e.g., spin-offs into IBB Ventures portfolio such as x-cardiac).
- NRW.BANK: North Rhine-Westphalia's state development bank, providing venture capital and financing to local startups. Comparable as a regional public-mandate VC in Germany, with similar co-funding structures to IBB Ventures' IBB/ERDF model.
- Capnamic: Cologne/Berlin-based early-stage VC investing in B2B software, fintech, and industrial tech. Comparable to IBB Ventures in German regional VC positioning, tech focus, and participation alongside IBB Ventures in consortium rounds (e.g., the Freshflow Series A).
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
IBB Ventures social profiles
Digital presenceIBB Ventures financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
IBB Ventures leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles19 records
IBB Ventures subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
IBB Ventures funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
IBB Ventures M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments272 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about IBB Ventures
What does IBB Ventures do?
IBB Ventures is a Berlin-based early-stage venture capital firm that provides equity investment tickets (Pre-Seed to Series A, €100K–€4M+ per case) to Berlin-headquartered startups through four specialized funds: the Tech Fund, Creative Fund, Impact Fund, and B# Pre-Seed Fund. The firm supplements capital with operational partnership, sector-specific Investment Directors, and an Office Hours consultation channel for prospective founders. All investment capital is sourced 50% from IBB/State of Berlin and 50% from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).
Is IBB Ventures a public or private company?
IBB Ventures is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was IBB Ventures founded?
IBB Ventures was founded in 1997. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is IBB Ventures based?
IBB Ventures is headquartered in Berlin, Germany, in the Europe region.
How does IBB Ventures make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Capital gains from successful exits are the primary driver. The others are public co-funding from IBB, State of Berlin, and EU ERDF.
Who are IBB Ventures's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are UVC Partners, Coparion, High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF) and btov Partners. Broad incumbents are Speedinvest and Earlybird Venture Capital. Regional players are Bayern Kapital, Fraunhofer Ventures, NRW.BANK and Capnamic.
Does IBB Ventures have an API?
No public API is recorded for IBB Ventures.
What industry is IBB Ventures in?
IBB Ventures's product category is Venture Capital. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSANAAAB, Early-Stage Venture Capital (Series A/B), with a secondary code of BPAHADAG, Capital Raising Advisory (Debt/Equity/Private Capital). Its NAICS code is 52394 and its SIC code is 6282.