eQventure

Have a good team. Having a good team is the most important aspect for us when deciding whether to invest. We see a lot of great technology, but without a strong team driving it forward, it probably won’t make much of a market impact.

Be open to collaboration. Generally, we work with companies with several cofounders. We do work with single founders as well, but we’ll often want them to add a COO, a CFO or other executives to the team.

Have a growing, scalable market. We look for a European or global market outlook with scalable technology. We do not invest in service companies as they do not scale.

Have a technology USP. Of course the company must have interesting, unique technology that matches our specializations, but this is just the first step.

[Name] eQventure

[Elevator Pitch]

[Sector]

[Description] “We are an investors club of around one hundred successful entrepreneurs, offering financing and advice to dozens of projects, mainly in Austria. We make investing easier and have become one of Austria’s leading private equity players.”

Deep tech

eQventure is an investment club of ex-founders who have extensive experience in both building companies and selling them successfully. “We are entrepreneurs,” says Herbert Gartner, CEO and cofounder of eQventure, “so not only do we want to invest our money, but we want to decide which projects and business models we support. We also have much to contribute in terms of know-how and access to our networks, a process which is both financially and personally rewarding. For us, it’s not enough to let a private equity fund make these decisions on our behalf.”

Based in Graz and founded in 2014, eQventure has been one of the biggest venture capital investors in Austria in recent years (e.g. in 2016, 2018 and 2019). On average, it invests around €20 million ($23.9 million) in equity per year, with the total standing at €130 million ($156 million). The club structure streamlines the investment process, as the investors and the firms being supported deal directly with eQventure. Thus, investments are channeled through a single trusted account. In addition, there are no salaries, with returns driven by equity gains. The investment is generally focused on Austrian hard-tech projects operating at the seed, startup and growth phases of business development. “We like patents,” says Herbert.

It has been a successful formula, attracting around one hundred club investors, mainly from Austria but also from around the world. This international dimension helps mobilize local knowledge as the businesses they support work to break into international markets. “If we want to access the Chinese market, we will add Chinese investors; to go into Norway, we invite Norwegian investors, and so on,” Herbert says. eQventure’s focus remains on Austria though, including supporting startups such as SteadySense and Leftshift One. In total, it has achieved thirty-five successful exits. The team is open to new suggestions and invites entrepreneurs to write or call.

[Apply to] office@eqventure.com