Nuremberg-based ZOHO.VC, the brand new enterprise capital arm of ZOLLHOF – Tech Incubator, right now introduced the profitable First Closing of its inaugural fund – with a goal quantity of €10 million – already securing securing 70% of the goal fund quantity ten months forward of the ultimate closing.
The main focus of the fund, which presently sits at €7 milllion, is on early stage technology-driven startups that profit from a detailed connection to the ZOLLHOF ecosystem.
Dennis Kirpensteijn, Basic Associate at ZOHO.VC, commented on the milestone: “Securing 70% of our capital by the First Closing is a large vote of confidence from our LPs. They assist us not solely with capital however with their very own networks, knowledgeable data throughout quite a lot of industries and applied sciences, and immense entrepreneurial expertise. It additionally reveals that our strategy – being deeply rooted within the operational startup ecosystem – strikes a chord in right now’s market.”
Evaluation from 2025 and 2026 reveals sustained exercise round early-stage, technology-driven enterprise funds throughout Europe, offering related context for ZOHO.VC’s first shut.
The Footprint Agency introduced a €76 million fund centered on early-stage local weather and DeepTech corporations throughout Northern Europe. Germany stays significantly energetic: Munich-based Vanagon Ventures secured €20 million to handle the pre-Seed DeepTech and AI hole, whereas Ananda Impression Ventures accomplished a €73 million first shut for its impact-focused know-how fund.
At a pan-European degree, U2V launched a €60 million car to again pre-Seed and Seed DeepTech startups rising from technical universities. Southern Europe has additionally seen new early-stage capital formation, with Milan-based Step Fund elevating €30 million for Seed-stage tech startups and Madrid-based Mission unveiling a €35 million pre-Seed fund following Demium VC’s rebrand.
Taken collectively, these bulletins account for roughly €294 million in newly raised or first-close capital directed in the direction of early-stage and adjoining know-how sectors, situating ZOHO.VC’s €7 million first shut inside a broader sample of continued European investor dedication to pre-Seed and Seed-stage know-how investing, together with a number of funds originating from Germany.
“We’re not simply financiers; we’re companions from day one. Launching its personal enterprise capital fund is the logical subsequent step for ZOLLHOF – Tech Incubator, making certain it may well proceed to offer superb circumstances for the expansion and scaling of know-how startups effectively into the long run,” provides Dennis.
ZOHO.VC is a VC fund born out of the ZOLLHOF innovation middle. The fund invests in know-how startups within the pre-Seed and Seed phases. By way of its mixture of capital, technical understanding, and a community of company companions, tech specialists, and co-investors, ZOHO.VC appears to supply startups extra than simply monetary assist.
The VC is led by Dennis Kirpensteijn, Benjamin Bauer, and Nicolas Sievers. The workforce is additional supported in its funding selections by Dr. Judit Klein, Head of Startups on the ZOLLHOF Tech Incubator.
The funding technique includes a mixture of startups rising from its personal incubation programme – just lately designated a “Startup Manufacturing facility” by the German Federal Authorities – in addition to co-investment alternatives from its investor community.
This technique is already yielding outcomes: parallel to the fundraising course of, the funding workforce has already added 5 startups to its portfolio. A spotlight is Merge Labs, the brand new enterprise from Sam Altman and FAU alumnus Alex Blania, whose funding spherical was led by the OpenAI Startup Fund.
On account of regular deal movement and quick development, companions Benjamin Bauer and Dennis Kirpensteijn, along with Principal Nicolas Sievers, plan to extend the fund quantity past the preliminary goal throughout 2026.
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