What Hede Capital Partners does

Hede Capital Partners AB is a Swedish private investment firm headquartered in Kungsbacka, Sweden, operating as an early-stage direct investor and active co-owner. The firm invests both capital and strategic expertise into portfolio companies, and uses its Scandinavian investor network to source deals, raise capital, and support portfolio growth. The firm is founder-led by Patrik Olson, with co-founder Jona Olson, and operates with a 7-person team.

The firm's disclosed portfolio spans multiple verticals including wearable technology (Lumeotech), gaming and animation (Friendbase / Palderio Creative Labs), medical-imaging decision-support software (Brainreader), unattended retail automation (HonestBox, operating in 600+ locations across Sweden, Denmark, USA, and Finland), and Nordic protein-snack concepts for the US market (Mellanmål Inc). In 2024, the firm launched Hede Defense Tech, a dedicated initiative to build a portfolio of 3–5 battle-tested Ukrainian defense-technology companies; to date, this initiative has deployed $400,000 into Estonian-Ukrainian unmanned-systems company Black Forest Systems (co-invested with Front Ventures) and $90,000 into Ukrainian tactical-mesh-communications startup Bravo Dynamics.

The firm's business model is sales-led and relationship-driven, with revenue derived from equity-investment returns rather than disclosed management fees. Investor access is structured through a website-based membership offering ("Bli Medlem"), and pricing or fee terms are not publicly disclosed. The firm has no proprietary technology platform; its competitive position rests on its Nordic investor network and its emerging role as a cross-border bridge between Ukrainian defense-tech operators and European capital.

Name

Hede Capital Partners

Legal name

Hede Capital Partners AB

Website

https://hedecapital.se

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Hede Capital Partners is a Swedish early-stage direct investment firm that takes active co-ownership positions across diversified verticals and a dedicated Ukrainian defense-tech initiative, deploying capital from a Scandinavian investor network into portfolio companies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Kungsbacka

HQ country

Sweden

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Investment Returns: Hede Capital Partners generates returns through direct equity investments in portfolio companies. They invest monetarily and knowledgeably in companies, acting as co-owners to drive high returns and successful outcomes for portfolio companies.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

Hede Capital Partners is a Swedish private investment firm that provides direct equity investments to early-stage companies and acts as an active co-owner, supplying both monetary capital and strategic expertise. It raises capital through its investor network, manages a diversified portfolio across wearable technology, gaming, healthcare software, unmanned retail, and food, and runs Hede Defense Tech — a dedicated initiative to build a portfolio of 3-5 battle-tested Ukrainian defense-tech companies.

Product overview

Hede Capital Partners is a Swedish investment firm offering direct investment and capital raising services. The firm operates as an active co-owner, providing both financial capital and strategic expertise to support portfolio company growth. The firm manages a diversified portfolio across multiple sectors including wearable technology, gaming, healthcare software, unmanned retail, and food products. Additionally, the firm has launched Hede Defense Tech, a dedicated initiative to build a portfolio of 3-5 battle-tested Ukrainian defense-tech companies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Hede Defense Tech: A specialized investment initiative focused on building a portfolio of 3-5 Ukrainian defense technology companies, tested in real combat conditions and ready for scale-up.

Products and services

• Hede Defense Tech Dedicated investment initiative targeting 3-5 battle-tested Ukrainian defense-tech companies, offering a structured investment process in collaboration with Ukraine's public and private sector, with focus on scaling next-generation defense technology for European security.
• Direct Investment Services Direct investment services in which Hede Capital Partners acts as active co-owner, providing both monetary capital and knowledge-based support to drive growth, high returns and successful outcomes for portfolio companies.
• Capital Raising Services Capital acquisition services leveraging an extensive Scandinavian investor network to secure funding for portfolio companies, with the goal of promoting their long-term success and financial stability.
• Membership / Bli Medlem (Investor Membership) Investor membership program enabling individuals and companies to join the Hede Capital network and co-invest alongside the firm in portfolio companies with high growth potential.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Shield Capital: US-based venture firm focused on early-stage defense, intelligence, and security technologies, including autonomous systems. Comparable as a specialist early-stage defense-tech investor with a thesis-driven portfolio approach.
• Lavrock Ventures: Early-stage venture firm investing in defense, intelligence, and national-security companies. Directly comparable in fund thesis (defense-tech focus) and stage, though based in the US.
• Double Tap Investments: Finnish-Ukrainian fund that was the pre-Hede investor in Black Forest Systems, enabling the first prototype before Hede's entry. Closely comparable as a small, thematically focused Nordic/Ukrainian defense-tech fund at a similar stage.
• Front Ventures: Swedish investment firm that co-led the $400,000 Black Forest Systems round with Hede Capital Partners and is described as a mutual co-investor. Operates in a similar Nordic/European early-stage, often defense-tech-adjacent mandate, making it the most directly comparable peer.

Broad incumbents

• Andreessen Horowitz (a16z): Major US venture firm with an active American Dynamism practice investing in defense, manufacturing, and public-sector technology. Comparable as a large-scale, thesis-driven VC peer for defense-tech founders, even though scale and stage differ.
• Actis: Global private equity firm with exposure to European and emerging-market investment themes. Comparable as a broader-PE peer with portfolio breadth and emerging-market exposure, though materially larger and less focused than Hede.
• Saab Ventures: Corporate venture arm of Saab AB, a major Swedish defense prime, with strategic interest in European defense-tech innovation. Comparable as a Swedish/European defense capital source, though substantially larger and strategic rather than financial.

Regional players

• Almi Invest: Swedish state-backed venture firm providing early-stage capital to Nordic startups across sectors. Comparable as a regional Swedish early-stage investor active in the same geographies and stage band as Hede, though with broader sector coverage.
• Industrifonden: Swedish venture and growth capital firm investing in Nordic deep tech and life sciences. Comparable as a Nordic, Sweden-headquartered early-stage investor of similar vintage, though with deeper tech and life-sciences focus.

Emerging players

• DefenceTech (defstart / D3 Ventures): Early-stage funds emerging in the European defense-tech investing ecosystem, often with Ukrainian-origin deal flow. Comparable as small, thesis-driven investors entering the same niche as Hede Defense Tech.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hede-capital-partners-ab

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments5 records

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

Frequently asked questions about Hede Capital Partners