Venture Capital Magazin

What Venture Capital Magazin does

VentureCapital Magazin, operated by brutkasten GmbH and headquartered at Am Kartoffelgarten 14 in Munich, is a German-language specialist media company serving the venture capital and private equity ecosystem in the DACH region. Founded in May 2000, it positions itself as the leading private equity portal in the German-speaking market, publishing a monthly print magazine, the vc-magazin.de online portal, and the biweekly Private Equity Flash newsletter, complemented by a video channel (VC Magazin Videos and BVK Videos), a digital e-magazine edition via PressMatrix, and a Who-is-who directory. The product portfolio also includes specialized publications such as the Impact Life Sciences supplement and the Business Angels Handbuch (priced at €28.50 plus shipping), plus event offerings including the German Innovation & Venture Day at WERK1 Munich and the KfW Capital-VC-Academy educational series (running four events per year).

The company monetizes through a mix of print and digital magazine subscriptions, advertising and an annual partner sponsorship program (with approximately 19 recurring institutional and corporate sponsors including BayBG Venture Capital, BVK, EXIST, KfW Capital, NRW.BANK, and PwC Deutschland), newsletter distribution, one-off publication sales, and event ticket revenue. GTM motion is event- and content-led, distributing news, deals (pre-seed through exit), interviews, and industry analysis across the DACH VC/PE audience of investors, family offices, founders, and intermediaries. Core technology is a WordPress-based publishing platform integrated with event management; the operation is run by a lean team of approximately five staff led by Mathias Renz (Head) and Janine Heidenfelder (Editor-in-Chief), with no external funding, parent company, or M&A activity disclosed in the source material.

Name

Venture Capital Magazin

Legal name

brutkasten GmbH

Website

https://vc-magazin.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

VentureCapital Magazin is a Munich-based, German-language specialist media brand founded in 2000 that publishes a print magazine, online portal (vc-magazin.de), biweekly newsletter, video channel, and events for venture capital, private equity, and entrepreneur audiences in the DACH region.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Financial Media

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (513120)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Business, Finance & Industry Trade Magazines (MPAJAEAM)

Keywords

• Venture capital media
• Private equity news
• Business magazine publishing
• Investment industry events
• Financial publishing DACH

Headquarters

HQ city

Munich

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Magazine Subscriptions: Print and digital magazine subscriptions providing coverage of private equity, venture capital, and entrepreneurship topics
2. Advertising and Sponsorship: Annual partner sponsorships and advertising placements in the magazine and on the website
3. Newsletter: Weekly Private Equity Flash newsletter distribution
4. Publication Sales: Sale of specialized publications like the Business Angels Handbuch for 28.50 EUR plus shipping
5. Event Tickets: Revenue from events and conferences including German Innovation & Venture Day

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Venture Capital Magazin (VentureCapital Magazin), operated by brutkasten GmbH, is a multi-platform B2B media company serving the German-speaking venture capital and private equity ecosystem. It publishes a monthly print magazine, runs the online portal vc-magazin.de, distributes the Private Equity Flash newsletter, and produces specialized publications, video content, and industry events such as the German Innovation & Venture Day.

Product overview

VentureCapital Magazin operates as a multi-platform media company offering a unified portfolio of print, digital, and event-based products for the German-speaking venture capital and private equity ecosystem. The core offering consists of the VentureCapital Magazin print publication (active since May 2000), its companion online portal VC-Magazin.de, and the Private Equity Flash newsletter. These are complemented by specialized publications including Impact Life Sciences (focusing on biotech and healthcare investments) and the Business Angels Handbuch (a comprehensive guide for angel investors). The company also operates a Video Channel for multimedia content and an E-Magazine digital edition. Event offerings include the KfW Capital-VC-Academy educational series and the German Innovation & Venture Day, while the platform also provides a Who-is-who directory and events calendar for the DACH VC/PE community.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• VC-Magazin: Online portal for venture capital and private equity news and information
• VC Magazin
• Private Equity Flash

Products and services

• VentureCapital Magazin (Print) Monthly print magazine (active since May 2000) covering venture capital, private equity, entrepreneurship and technology trends, providing in-depth reporting, interviews, deal coverage, and background analysis to professional investors, entrepreneurs, and intermediaries in the DACH region.
• VC-Magazin.de (Online Portal)
• Private Equity Flash (Newsletter) Bi-weekly (in some sources described as weekly) email newsletter delivering curated private equity news, deal updates, and industry intelligence to subscribers in the DACH VC/PE community.
• Impact Life Sciences (Special Publication) Specialized publication and online category focusing on life sciences investments, biotech, CDMOs/CROs, digital health, AI in healthcare, and corporate partnerships in the life sciences sector.
• Business Angels Handbuch - Leitfaden für Business Angels III 464-page specialized handbook for business angels, written by 80 authors, covering how to become an angel investor, fundamentals, networks, deal sourcing, markets, transactions, and contracts. Sold at 28.50 EUR plus shipping.
• German Innovation & Venture Day Annual in-person startup event featuring pitches, networking, and industry leader exchanges, held at WERK1 in Munich, bringing together startups, investors, and corporate partners.
• KfW Capital-VC-Academy Educational event series held four times per year (in its fifth year as of 2026) featuring expert insights into the venture capital ecosystem, co-hosted with KfW Capital and covering topics such as exit strategies and private capital for VC.
• Who-is-who Directory Directory service listing key players, contacts, and firms in the venture capital and private equity industry in the DACH region.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

20 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Atares GmbHminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual partner of VC Magazin, supporting the publication and gaining visibility among the VC/PE community in DACH region
• BayBG Venture CapitalminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual partner of VC Magazin, Bavarian venture capital provider supporting the publication
• BioM Biotech Cluster Development GmbHminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual partner and co-organizer of BayOConnect biotech conference featured on VC Magazin platform
• BVK (Bundesverband Beteiligungskapital)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKey strategic partner representing German private equity industry. VC Magazin hosts BVK videos and collaborates on events including BVK Night at SuperReturn International
• EXISTminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual partner - German government startup funding program
• FGK Clinical ResearchminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual partner of VC Magazin
• Heuking Kühn Lüer WojtekminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual partner - law firm specializing in business law
• IZB (Innovationszentrum für Biotechnologie)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual partner - biotech innovation center in Munich
• KfW CapitalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKey partner co-hosting KfW Capital-VC-Academy events featured on VC Magazin platform. Four events per year covering VC ecosystem topics
• MBG Mittelständische BeteiligungsgesellschaftminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual partner of VC Magazin
• MC ServicesminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual partner - communications agency for life sciences
• Munich StartupminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAnnual partner - Munich startup ecosystem platform
• nbank capitalminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual partner - Lower Saxony's development bank venture arm
• NRW.BANKcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKey partner co-organizing Private Equity-Konferenz NRW featured on VC Magazin platform
• Osborne ClarkeminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual partner - international law firm
• PwC DeutschlandminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAnnual partner - professional services firm providing expertise and content for VC Magazin
• TGW Logistics VenturesminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual partner of VC Magazin
• VREP (German Private Equity Association)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual partner of VC Magazin
• WIPITminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual partner of VC Magazin
• WuXi AppTecminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual partner - global pharmaceutical and biotech service provider

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• gruenderSZENE: gruenderSZENE (now part of Business Insider Deutschland) is a major German-language startup and VC media outlet. It is a larger, digitally focused competitor covering the same founder and investor audience as VC Magazin at greater scale.
• PitchBook: PitchBook is a global PE/VC data and research platform serving institutional investors. While product-different (data vs. media), it serves the same DACH PE/VC buyer audience and competes for share of wallet via deal intelligence and research.
• Crunchbase: Crunchbase is a global startup and VC intelligence platform used by the same investors and founders VC Magazin targets. It competes for the same audience attention and advertising spend through structured deal data rather than editorial content.
• Private Equity International (PEI Media): PEI is a global PE/VC-focused B2B media brand producing magazines, newsletters, and events. It is a broad incumbent covering the same investor and advisor audience as VC Magazin but at a global scale rather than DACH-specific.

Direct peers

• StartingUp Magazin: StartingUp is a German B2B magazine and platform focused on startups, entrepreneurship, and funding in DACH. VC Magazin explicitly co-publishes with StartingUp on its 2026 special issue, evidencing direct overlap in audience and editorial scope.
• GoingPublic Media: GoingPublic is a German B2B media platform covering capital markets, private equity, venture capital, and IPOs in the DACH region. It is the closest direct competitor to VC Magazin in German-language PE/VC trade publishing.
• DEAL Magazin: DEAL Magazin is a German-language trade publication covering M&A, private equity, and corporate finance transactions in DACH. It directly competes for the same investor and advisor readership and sponsorship budgets as VC Magazin.
• FINANCE Magazin: FINANCE Magazin is a German B2B trade publication covering corporate finance, M&A, PE, and capital markets. It overlaps with VC Magazin's audience of CFOs, advisors, and PE investors in the DACH region.
• VentureCapital Journal (PEI): VentureCapital Journal is a PEI Media product focused specifically on the venture capital asset class. It is a direct editorial and audience peer for VC Magazin's VC-focused coverage and serves institutional VC investors globally.
• Munich Startup: Munich Startup is a Munich-based ecosystem platform covering startups, investors, and funding events in the Bavarian/DACH region. It is a named annual partner of VC Magazin and serves a substantially overlapping founder and investor audience.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/vc_magazin

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Venture Capital Magazin