Bayern Kapital
Bayern Kapital is Bavaria's public venture capital firm and 100% subsidiary of LfA Förderbank Bayern, investing €250K–€50M in Bavarian high-tech, deep-tech, and life sciences startups from pre-seed to scale-up, with ~€1.3B AUM across 380+ portfolio companies.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1995
- HeadquartersLandshut, Germany
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Bayern Kapital does
Bayern Kapital GmbH is a public venture capital firm and 100% subsidiary of LfA Förderbank Bayern (the state development bank of the Free State of Bavaria), founded in 1995 and headquartered in Landshut with additional offices in Munich (Werk 1 and Urban Colab). It operates a multi-fund investment platform covering the full lifecycle of Bavarian high-tech, deep-tech, and life sciences startups, with six distinct fund vehicles: Seedfonds Bayern (up to €750K), Innovationsfonds Bayern (up to €2.5M), Innovationsfonds EFRE II (up to €3M, up to €8M with STEP), Wachstumsfonds Bayern (€2–10M), ScaleUp-Fonds Bayern (€10–25M, €200M total), and the newer Wachstums- und ScaleUp-Fonds (up to €50M per company, €500M total). The firm manages approximately €1.3 billion in assets under management, has invested over €650 million of its own equity across more than 380 startups and scaleups, and currently holds more than 120 active portfolio companies that have collectively created over 7,000–12,000 jobs in Bavaria.
The firm invests pari passu alongside private co-investors on standard VC economic terms, meaning every Bayern Kapital commitment must be matched by at least an equal private investment on the same terms. Its revenue model combines fund management economics (management fees and carried interest on deployed capital) with venture capital returns generated from exits such as EOS, SIRION Biotech (acquired by Perkin Elmer in 2021), AMW GmbH (sold to Ren Life Sciences and Juno Capital Partners in March 2026), and Veact GmbH (acquired by Infomedia in June 2026). Bayern Kapital is restricted by mandate to companies whose registered office, development site, or value creation is in Bavaria, and operates from a documented digital infrastructure stack (Usercentrics for consent management, etracker for analytics, Mailchimp for newsletters, DocuSign for e-signatures) to manage deal flow, co-investor syndication, and portfolio communications.
Bayern Kapital is governed by Managing Directors Monika Steger and Markus Mrachacz, with Dr. Sabine Jarothe chairing the supervisory board, and is led by a 30–50+ person investment team organized around an Investment Team, controlling, HR, communications, and investor relations functions. Its go-to-market combines direct inbound pitch-deck submission ([email protected]), curated in-person networking events (connect@bayernkapital, Thementag Space with the German Air Force, VC-Insights with Encourage Ventures), and earned media coverage in VC Magazin, Plattform Life Sciences, IHK Magazine, and Chemie Cluster Bayern. The portfolio spans biotech, fusion energy, space tech, quantum computing, AI/deepfake detection, cybersecurity, agritech, climate tech, e-commerce software, and industrial 3D printing, with notable positions including commercetools, EGYM, Isar Aerospace, OroraTech, SimScale, IQM Quantum Computers, Proxima Fusion, Tubulis, and Reflex Aerospace.
Bayern Kapital firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Bayern Kapital
- Legal name
- Bayern Kapital GmbH
- Website
- https://bayernkapital.de
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1995
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Bayern Kapital is Bavaria's public venture capital firm and 100% subsidiary of LfA Förderbank Bayern, investing €250K–€50M in Bavarian high-tech, deep-tech, and life sciences startups from pre-seed to scale-up, with ~€1.3B AUM across 380+ portfolio companies.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Bayern Kapital industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Venture Capital
- NAICS
- Other Investment Pools and Funds (5259), Open-End Investment Funds (52591)
- SIC
- Investors, Nec (6799)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Early-Stage Venture Capital (Series A/B) (FSANAAAB)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Venture Capital Fund-of-Funds (FSANAGAC)
Keywords
Where Bayern Kapital is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Landshut
- HQ country
- Germany
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices3 records
Markets served
Bayern Kapital business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Venture capital fund returns: Bayern Kapital invests 250,000 EUR to 50,000,000 EUR of equity per company via multiple fund vehicles (Seedfonds Bayern, Innovationsfonds, Innovationsfonds EFRE II, Wachstumsfonds Bayern, ScaleUp-Fonds Bayern with 200M EUR volume, and the 500M EUR Wachstums- und ScaleUp-Fonds). Returns are generated from successful exits such as the 2026 sale of Veact GmbH to Infomedia, the 2021 exit of SIRION Biotech to Perkin Elmer, EOS, EGYM, commercetools, and others; Bayern Kapital explicitly states it works profit-oriented like every VC investor. The structure allows patient capital across many financing rounds.
- Fund management under management fees and carried interest: Bayern Kapital manages around 1.3 billion EUR of fund capital for the Free State of Bavaria, deploying over 650 million EUR of its own equity into more than 380 startups and scaleups. As a 100% subsidiary of LfA Förderbank Bayern, the firm operates under standard VC fund economics while also generating the so-called "Bayern-Effekt" of technology innovation and over 12,000 jobs across the region.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Seedfonds Bayern: up to 750,000 EUR per company (max 24 months company age) |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Innovationsfonds Bayern: up to 2.5M EUR per company from founding |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Innovationsfonds EFRE II: up to 3M EUR (up to 8M EUR with STEP program) |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Wachstumsfonds Bayern: 2–10M EUR per company, from Series A onwards |
| Other | Multi-year contract | ScaleUp-Fonds Bayern: 10–25M EUR per company (200M EUR total fund volume) |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Wachstums- und ScaleUp-Fonds: up to 50M EUR per company (500M EUR total) |
Go-to-market motion4 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels10 records
Bayern Kapital product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Bayern Kapital provides venture capital financing to Bavarian high-tech, deep-tech and life sciences startups and scaleups through a stack of six complementary fund vehicles ranging from Seedfonds Bayern (up to €750K) and Innovationsfonds Bayern (up to €2.5M) through Innovationsfonds EFRE II (up to €3M, up to €8M with STEP) to Wachstumsfonds Bayern (€2–10M), ScaleUp-Fonds Bayern (€10–25M) and the €500M Wachstums- und ScaleUp-Fonds (up to €50M per company). All investments are made pari passu alongside private co-investors under standard VC economic terms, with the firm operating as a 100% subsidiary of LfA Förderbank Bayern on behalf of the Free State of Bavaria.
Product overview
Bayern Kapital is not a technology product company but rather Bavaria's venture capital and growth investor for the high-tech and deep-tech sector, operating as a 100% subsidiary of LfA Förderbank Bayern. Its offering is a platform of complementary investment funds rather than a single product: the Seedfonds Bayern (up to 750,000 EUR), the Bayern Kapital Innovationsfonds (up to 2.5M EUR), the Bayern Kapital Innovationsfonds EFRE II (up to 3M EUR, up to 8M with STEP program), the Wachstumsfonds Bayern (2-10M EUR), the ScaleUp-Fonds Bayern (10-25M EUR), and the newest Wachstums- und ScaleUp-Fonds (up to 50M EUR, 500M total volume) work together to provide a continuous capital path from pre-seed through exit. These funds form the core capital-deployment services, complemented by co-investment support for private investors (pari passu), founder support services (expertise and network), a curated portfolio of over 380 startups, and community-building events like connect@bayernkapital. The firm has over 30 years of experience, 1.3 billion EUR under management, and focuses on Bavarian high-tech, deep tech, and life sciences companies.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Seedfonds Bayern Seed fund investing up to €750,000 per company in young Bavarian tech companies (max 24 months company age) at the beginning of product development. Targets founders in the very first stage who need initial equity capital alongside later Bayern Kapital vehicles.
- Bayern Kapital Innovationsfonds Innovation fund investing up to €2.5 million per company in young Bavarian tech companies in the development phase, requiring innovative business models and internationally scalable growth strategies.
- Bayern Kapital Innovationsfonds EFRE II EFRE II innovation fund investing up to €3 million per company in Bavarian EFRE regions developing new products/production processes or financing market entry, co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (EFRE); with EU STEP program additional funding ticket sizes can reach up to €8 million.
- Wachstumsfonds Bayern (Growth Fund) Growth fund investing €2–10 million per company from Series A onwards, primarily in cooperation with private investors and often combined with subordinated loans, targeting established Bavarian companies entering the growth phase.
- ScaleUp-Fonds Bayern ScaleUp fund with €200 million total volume, enabling investment tickets of €10–25 million per company for capital-intensive growth or imminent-exit companies from Series A onwards.
- Wachstums- und ScaleUp-Fonds (Growth and ScaleUp Fund) Bayern Kapital's largest and newest fund, with a €500 million total volume, supporting established rapidly expanding tech companies in the later-stage phase targeting international growth or exit, with ticket sizes up to €50 million per company.
- Bayern Kapital Co-Investment Syndication Service Service for private investors (venture capital funds, corporate VCs, family offices, and business angels) that enables them to co-invest pari passu alongside Bayern Kapital's anchor tickets, with access to weekly consortium formation and a 30-year DACH network.
- Bayern Kapital Founder Support Services Non-capital support offering for founders combining capital, operational expertise and access to a deep network of market-leading companies, industry experts and investors across all company phases from seed to growth through successful exit or IPO.
Quantifiable outcome
- 1.3 billion EUR under management with 380+ portfolio companies and 12,000+ jobs created in Bavaria
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Bayern Kapital
Customer profileNamed customers60 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Bayern Kapital technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration4 records
Feature3 records
Bayern Kapital partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
15 partnerships are on record, tiered major co-investor and oem partner in deepdrive alongside bayern kapital., co-investor in deepdrive alongside bayern kapital; major automotive oem partnership potential., strategic event partner for the thementag space 2026 in munich., recurring event co-organizer with bayern kapital for business angel programming., external pr agency partner for bayern kapital (daniela palatzky, sendlinger straße 42a, 80802 münchen)., design and website partner (munich)., consent management platform provider for the bayern kapital website (gdpr compliance)., newsletter delivery vendor for bayern kapital., web analytics provider for the bayern kapital website (eprivacyseal certified)., e-signature vendor for bayern kapital deal and corporate workflows., source of bayern kapital's portfolio company proxima fusion (first spin-out)., source of bayern kapital's portfolio company isar aerospace (spin-off)., source of bayern kapital's portfolio company nanostruct (2021 spin-out)., source of bayern kapital's portfolio company nature robots (spin-off). and business angel co-investor in driveblocks alongside bayern kapital..
- BMW i Venturesmajor co-investor and oem partner in deepdrive alongside bayern kapital.BMW i Ventures, Continental's Corporate VC, and UVC Partners co-invested in DeepDrive, the high-efficiency e-motor developer.
- Continental (Corporate Venture Capital)co-investor in deepdrive alongside bayern kapital; major automotive oem partnership potential.Continental's Corporate VC arm co-invested in DeepDrive with Bayern Kapital, BMW i Ventures, and UVC Partners.
- Deutsche Luftwaffe (German Air Force)strategic event partner for the thementag space 2026 in munich.Joint host of the curated Thementag Space event on 21–22 April 2026, bringing together selected startups, Luftwaffe/Bundeswehr representatives, space investors and ecosystem partners in multiple Munich locations.
- encourage venturesrecurring event co-organizer with bayern kapital for business angel programming.encourage ventures and Bayern Kapital co-organize the VC-Insights für Business Angels event series, including the June 17, 2026 edition at the Lohaus Gallery on the eve of the Munich Startup Festival.
- Schwartz Public Relationsexternal pr agency partner for bayern kapital (daniela palatzky, sendlinger straße 42a, 80802 münchen).External PR agency handling Bayern Kapital's press relations across all media.
- UNIBRAND GmbHdesign and website partner (munich).UNIBRAND GmbH (Tal 15, 80331 München) handles the conception, design, and realization of the Bayern Kapital website.
- Usercentrics GmbHconsent management platform provider for the bayern kapital website (gdpr compliance).Usercentrics Consent Management Platform is used to gather and manage cookie consent on the Bayern Kapital website in compliance with GDPR Art. 6(1)(c). Data processed within the EU.
- Mailchimp (Rocket Science Group LLC)newsletter delivery vendor for bayern kapital.Mailchimp is used to send Bayern Kapital's newsletter and analyze campaign performance, with US data transfers based on EU Standard Contractual Clauses.
- etracker GmbHweb analytics provider for the bayern kapital website (eprivacyseal certified).etracker is used for web analysis and optimization of the Bayern Kapital website, with data processed exclusively in Germany and an ePrivacyseal certification.
- DocuSign, Inc.e-signature vendor for bayern kapital deal and corporate workflows.DocuSign is used for legally secure electronic signatures on Bayern Kapital documents, with EU and US data transfers governed by the EU-US Data Privacy Framework, BCRs, and SCCs.
- Max-Planck-Institut für Plasmaphysiksource of bayern kapital's portfolio company proxima fusion (first spin-out).Max-Planck-Institut für Plasmaphysik is the originating research institution of Proxima Fusion, building on the W7-X stellarator experiment. Bayern Kapital's portfolio success story.
- Technische Universität München (TUM)source of bayern kapital's portfolio company isar aerospace (spin-off).Isar Aerospace is a 2018 spin-off of TUM; Bayern Kapital is an anchor investor in the company.
- Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburgsource of bayern kapital's portfolio company nanostruct (2021 spin-out).University origin of NanoStruct, the food-safety detection startup in Bayern Kapital's portfolio.
- German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI)source of bayern kapital's portfolio company nature robots (spin-off).Nature Robots is a spin-off of the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI), in which Bayern Kapital is an investor.
- Joachim Drees (former MAN Truck & Bus CEO)business angel co-investor in driveblocks alongside bayern kapital.Former MAN Truck & Bus CEO Joachim Drees co-invested as a business angel in driveblocks' €3.5M Pre-Series A alongside Bayern Kapital, FORWARD.one and Rethink Ventures.
Scale indicators12 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Bayern Kapital competitors and assessment
Company assessmentMarket position
Competitive moat7 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Bayern Kapital social profiles
Digital presenceBayern Kapital compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance4 records
Bayern Kapital financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Bayern Kapital leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles10 records
Bayern Kapital funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Bayern Kapital M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments302 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Bayern Kapital
What does Bayern Kapital do?
Bayern Kapital provides venture capital financing to Bavarian high-tech, deep-tech and life sciences startups and scaleups through a stack of six complementary fund vehicles ranging from Seedfonds Bayern (up to €750K) and Innovationsfonds Bayern (up to €2.5M) through Innovationsfonds EFRE II (up to €3M, up to €8M with STEP) to Wachstumsfonds Bayern (€2–10M), ScaleUp-Fonds Bayern (€10–25M) and the €500M Wachstums- und ScaleUp-Fonds (up to €50M per company). All investments are made pari passu alongside private co-investors under standard VC economic terms, with the firm operating as a 100% subsidiary of LfA Förderbank Bayern on behalf of the Free State of Bavaria.
Is Bayern Kapital a public or private company?
Bayern Kapital is a private company. It is classified as state government owned and is currently operating.
When was Bayern Kapital founded?
Bayern Kapital was founded in 1995. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Bayern Kapital based?
Bayern Kapital is headquartered in Landshut, Germany, in the Europe region.
How does Bayern Kapital make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Venture capital fund returns are the primary driver. The others are fund management under management fees and carried interest.
Does Bayern Kapital have an API?
No public API is recorded for Bayern Kapital.
What industry is Bayern Kapital in?
Bayern Kapital'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 FSANAGAC, Venture Capital Fund-of-Funds. Its NAICS code is 5259 and its SIC code is 6799.