Early-Stage VCs in Europe: 22 Pre-Seed and Seed Funds by Country, With Tickets and How to Pitch
Most lists of European VCs mix seed funds with growth investors and copy fund sizes from other lists. If you are raising a pre-seed or seed round, you need three things: a fund that invests at your stage, in your region, and a ticket size that matches your round. We checked 22 early-stage venture capital firms in Europe on their own websites in October 2026, grouped by country: where they are based, the earliest stage they state, the first ticket they publish (if they publish one), their latest fund from their own announcement and how to reach them. All of them invest across sectors or across broad tech; for science-heavy startups, see our separate list of deep tech VCs.
Quick answer: in the UK, start with Seedcamp (first cheque $350K to $1.25M), Connect Ventures (pre-seed rounds of $500K to $5M) and LocalGlobe. In Germany, Cherry Ventures (EUR 2M to 10M), Earlybird (new EUR 360M Fund VIII), Point Nine, HV Capital and 10x Founders lead seed rounds. In France, Kima Ventures writes 150K one-off tickets in about 100 new deals a year and Partech Seed invests EUR 300K to 3M from day one. Nordic founders should talk to byFounders, Inventure, Creandum and Northzone; CEE founders to Credo, Inovo and Speedinvest; Spanish founders to K Fund.
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Early-Stage VC Firms in Europe Compared
Sources: each firm's own website and fund announcements, checked 31 October 2026. "Not published" means the firm's site does not state it; figures can change.
The 22 Early-Stage VCs in Europe for 2027, by Country
Most of these funds invest across Europe, but they meet most founders in their home markets, so we grouped them by where they are based. Each entry gives what the firm states itself; if a figure is not on its site, we say so. Raising in the US or Canada instead? See our list of early-stage VCs in North America.
United Kingdom
1. Seedcamp (London, with a New York office) calls itself the first backer of its companies, from pre-product to post-launch. Its FAQ says its first cheque is usually $350K to $1.25M, that it likes to lead or co-lead and that it aims to finish the process within two weeks, ending with a partner pitch. On June 19, 2026 it announced $320 million in new funds: $220 million for Fund VII, its first-cheque fund, and $100 million for its Select fund.
2. LocalGlobe is the pre-seed and seed fund of Phoenix Court in King's Cross, London, and describes itself as sector generalist and the place where most Phoenix Court relationships begin. Its companies page lists 2025 seed investments such as MicroAGI and Wonder Studios next to Mistral AI and CuspAI. It publishes no ticket size; the firm's later-stage funds are Latitude (early growth) and Solar (scale-up).
3. Connect Ventures in London has invested from inception to seed since 2012. In its latest fund post it announced a first close of $55 million for Fund V, against an $80 million target, to lead pre-seed rounds across Europe with cheques of $500K to $5M, for technical founders in AI, infrastructure, hardware, robotics and biotech. It led the pre-seed rounds of Nexcade and Mosaico in 2025.
4. Notion Capital in London calls itself Europe's leading early-stage business software investor and says it leads at an early stage. Its news page shows it led Origin's $30 million Series A+ on March 25, 2026. It publishes no ticket size or fund size on its homepage; it fits B2B software founders.
5. Balderton Capital in London backs European-founded tech companies; its portfolio shows seed and Series A entries, from Revolut (seed, 2015) to Fuse Energy (seed, 2022). On August 12, 2024 it announced $1.3 billion across Early Stage Fund IX and Growth Fund II. On October 14, 2026 it led Duvo's $32 million Series A. It is the largest fund in this list and usually leads rounds a step later than the pure seed funds.
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Germany
6. Point Nine in Berlin is a thesis-driven early-stage firm that now invests globally in AI for the digital, physical and biological world. It invests $1 million to $10 million per company, and each of its three partners works with six to eight companies at a time. Its 2026 investments include pre-seed rounds in F13 and Odyssey and a seed round in Recast. It publishes no fund size.
7. Cherry Ventures in Berlin invests across all industries in Europe, from pre-seed to Series A, with seed as its core stage, often before product or revenue. It typically invests EUR 2 million to 10 million and reserves more than half of its fund for follow-ons. Its fund history: Cherry II EUR 150 million (2016), Cherry III EUR 175 million (2019), Cherry IV EUR 320 million (2022) and Cherry V $500 million (2025).
8. Earlybird has offices in Berlin, Munich, London and Milan and backs pre-seed to Series A founders in emerging tech, from fintech to nuclear fusion. Its homepage gives the split (pre-seed 20%, seed 60%, Series A 20%), initial tickets up to EUR 12 million and EUR 2.5 billion under management. On April 30, 2026 it announced the close of Fund VIII at EUR 360 million.
9. HV Capital in Munich manages EUR 2.8 billion across nine fund generations. Its Venture Fund leads seed and Series A rounds with EUR 500K to 10 million; it was the first investor in Zalando, Flix and Depop. Recent news on its site: Exein's $270 million round at a $1.7 billion valuation (September 15, 2026).
10. Project A in Berlin (with London and Munich offices) calls itself a pan-European pre-seed and seed investor and has partnered with more than 130 founding teams since 2012. Project A Studio is its pre-investment platform where founders can validate ideas before a round. Founders send their pitch by email, using the address on its contact page.
11. 10x Founders in Munich is a network-powered investor backed by more than 300 entrepreneurs. It invests at pre-seed, seed and Series A with initial cheques of EUR 500K to 2.5 million from a EUR 160 million fund, a large part of which is reserved for follow-ons; its 2025 investments include Cocrafter (pre-seed) and Arlequin (seed).
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France
12. Kima Ventures calls itself "the most active business angel in the world". Its homepage says it invests 150K one-off tickets in 100 new deals a year, at any stage, deal size and sector, which is about two startups a week; portfolio names include Alan, Pennylane, Mistral AI and Deel. It publishes no fund size or address on its homepage.
13. Partech has run a dedicated Seed team since 2013. It writes initial cheques of EUR 300K to 3 million as lead or syndicate investor, invests as early as day one in Europe and around the globe, and is not limited by industry. On October 6, 2026 Partech led Netsec's round of more than $10 million. Its funds page also notes that the Partech Growth team spun out in 2026 as Aletheon Investments.
14. Alven in Paris has been an independent early-stage VC for 25 years; Qonto and Gorgias are among its companies. It publishes no ticket or fund size; its news page is active, with Rivercell's $25 million round on October 13, 2026.
Nordics and Baltics
15. Creandum has offices in Stockholm, London, Berlin and San Francisco and says it supports early-stage entrepreneurs "from Seed to IPO and beyond". Its stories page lists its work with Lovable, Plancraft and Sereact. Its site does not publish a ticket or fund size.
16. Northzone has offices in London, New York, Berlin, Stockholm and Amsterdam, backs companies "from inception to IPO" and has more than $3.1 billion under management. In June 2026 it hired a London partner to lead early-stage AI investment from seed to Series B; that post puts its latest fundraise above $1.2 billion.
17. byFounders in Copenhagen is a community-powered VC of the "New Nordics", built by founders, that wants to be your first investor. Its portfolio of 65 companies includes 20 at pre-seed and 21 at seed, with Lovable and Corti among them. Its FAQ says it is actively investing, takes pitches through a form on its site and usually decides in two to four weeks.
18. Inventure (Helsinki, Stockholm and London) backs founders with roots in the Nordics and the Baltics at seed. Its sweet spot is a EUR 1 million to 3 million ticket, within a range of EUR 300K to 5 million, and it says it was the first institutional investor in 87% of its portfolio. Its Fund IV is supported by the InvestEU Fund.
Austria and Central and Eastern Europe
19. Speedinvest in Vienna (with offices in Berlin, London, Munich and Paris) invests EUR 250K to 5 million from inception to seed, and leads 85% of its initial investments. On January 31, 2024 it closed Speedinvest 4 at EUR 350 million. Its sector teams cover AI and infrastructure, climate and industrial tech, deep tech, fintech, health and marketplaces.
20. Credo Ventures (Prague and Krakow) backs founders from Central and Eastern Europe and the CEE diaspora at pre-seed, "before product, before revenue, often before a deck". It leads pre-seed rounds with $1M to $5M cheques and backed ElevenLabs and UiPath early.
21. Inovo in Warsaw (with Amsterdam and Luxembourg offices) is a seed-stage VC for CEE founders. Its first ticket is EUR 0.5 million to 4 million, with follow-ons up to EUR 10 million and occasional EUR 100K to 250K discovery tickets. It currently invests from Fund III, EUR 107 million (2022 vintage), and publishes its term sheet.
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Spain and Southern Europe
22. K Fund (Kfund) is based in Madrid. On June 18, 2024 it announced more than EUR 70 million in commitments for K3, and says its vehicles fund startups with EUR 100,000 to 10 million, from pre-seed to Series B. Its team runs a pre-seed programme, and its portfolio page lists companies tagged 2026, such as HappyRobot.
Firms That Left This List and Why
The 2025 version of this article listed 25 names. 15 are still active early-stage investors and stay. Ten were removed, and we added seven regional seed funds (LocalGlobe, Cherry Ventures, byFounders, Inventure, Credo, Inovo and K Fund):
- Renamed or merged: Draper Esprit has been Molten Ventures since November 9, 2021, according to Molten's investor pages, and Idinvest Partners became part of Eurazeo, which bought 70% of it in April 2018; idinvest.com no longer resolves.
- Not seed investors: Molten Ventures now says it backs founders "from Series A and beyond", Highland Europe invests in growth-stage companies and Augmentum Fintech describes itself as a growth investor.
- Not confirmed: we could not confirm a seed focus for Atomico (its site blocked our checks), Dawn Capital (its About page gives a B2B focus but no stage) or EQT Ventures (EQT's group site no longer names a Ventures strategy).
- Not European: BlueRun Ventures lists no European office, and Bessemer Venture Partners is a US firm; it is in our list of early-stage VC firms worldwide.
- Removed figures: every "Fund Size" line in the old article had no source on the firms' own sites and was dropped. Point Nine's focus also changed: it now invests $1M to $10M per company in AI.
How to Pitch a European Seed VC in 5 Steps
- Shortlist by region. Local funds see local founders first: Credo and Inovo in CEE, byFounders and Inventure in the Nordics, K Fund in Spain. Compare markets in our guide to the best countries for startups in Europe.
- Check stage and ticket. A EUR 500K pre-seed round fits Speedinvest, Partech Seed, Inovo or 10x Founders; a EUR 3M+ seed round fits Cherry, Earlybird, HV Capital or Point Nine.
- Use the open doors. Seedcamp and byFounders take pitches through forms; Project A and 10x Founders list an email address. Warm introductions from portfolio founders still work best for the larger firms.
- Pitch a partner. Build a fundraising pitch deck that tells a story and expect a first call, then a partner meeting.
- Close and keep reserves in mind. Read up on term sheet negotiation and ask how much the fund keeps for follow-ons.
Which Early-Stage VC in Europe Should You Choose?
- Idea or prototype, no revenue: Connect Ventures, Credo, byFounders, Seedcamp or Partech Seed, which all say they invest at the very start.
- Small first ticket: Kima Ventures (150K one-off), Speedinvest (from EUR 250K) or Partech Seed (from EUR 300K).
- Larger seed round with a lead: Cherry Ventures, Earlybird, HV Capital, Point Nine, Balderton or Northzone.
- B2B software: Notion Capital first; Point Nine for AI-native software.
- CEE founder: Credo, Inovo or Speedinvest. Nordic or Baltic founder: byFounders, Inventure, Creandum or Northzone. Spanish founder: K Fund.
- Deep tech or hardware: see our deep tech VCs in Europe; for AI, our VCs for AI startups.
- Outside Europe: compare our early-stage VCs in Asia.
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How Founders Get Ready for a European Seed Round
Seed funds back evidence, not only ambition. Before you pitch, run our 30-day validation sprint or validate your startup idea with our service, and avoid the classic pre-seed fundraising mistakes. Many founders raise a first cheque from angels before a VC round: see our list of angel investors for early-stage startups in Europe. Non-dilutive money stretches a round: read our guide to grants for early-stage startups in Europe, our overview of startup funding in Europe and our sister site's comparison of venture capital vs grants. If you are still choosing a base, compare startup incubators in Europe and the best countries for early-stage startups. Partners meet founders at events: see our lists of fundraising and investor events and startup events in London, Berlin, Paris and Stockholm. Women founders can add our guide to angel investors for women founders and the numbers in our female founder funding statistics.
FAQ About Early-Stage VCs in Europe
Which VC funds in Europe invest at pre-seed?
Connect Ventures, Credo Ventures, byFounders, Seedcamp, Partech Seed (from day one), Speedinvest (from inception), Project A, 10x Founders, Inovo and Earlybird (20% of its deals) all state that they invest at pre-seed.
How much do European seed VCs invest?
Only some publish it: Kima 150K one-off tickets, Speedinvest EUR 250K to 5M, Partech Seed EUR 300K to 3M, Inovo EUR 0.5M to 4M, HV Capital EUR 500K to 10M, 10x Founders EUR 500K to 2.5M, Seedcamp $350K to $1.25M, Cherry EUR 2M to 10M, Point Nine $1M to $10M and Earlybird up to EUR 12M.
Which European VC funds raised a new fund recently?
Seedcamp announced a $220M Fund VII in June 2026, Earlybird closed a EUR 360M Fund VIII in April 2026 and Connect Ventures had a $55M first close for Fund V. Cherry V ($500M) dates from 2025.
Is Kima Ventures a VC or an angel?
It calls itself the most active business angel in the world, but it invests like a fund: 150K one-off tickets in about 100 new deals a year, at any stage and in any sector.
Which seed VCs focus on Central and Eastern Europe?
Credo Ventures (Prague and Krakow, $1M to $5M at pre-seed), Inovo (Warsaw, EUR 0.5M to 4M) and Speedinvest (Vienna, EUR 250K to 5M).
Which seed VCs focus on the Nordics?
byFounders in Copenhagen and Inventure in Helsinki invest at pre-seed and seed; Creandum (Stockholm) and Northzone also invest early, alongside later rounds.
What happened to Draper Esprit and Idinvest?
Draper Esprit was renamed Molten Ventures in November 2021, and Molten now invests from Series A. Idinvest Partners became part of Eurazeo after Eurazeo bought 70% of it in April 2018.
How long does a European seed VC take to decide?
It varies. byFounders says its process typically runs two to four weeks, and Seedcamp aims to finish within two weeks of meeting you.
Should I raise from a VC or from angels first?
Many first rounds start with angels and grants and add a seed fund once there is traction. Funds such as Credo, Connect and byFounders say they want to be the first investor, so you can also start with them.
How can I get my startup in front of more investors?
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About the Author
Violetta Bonenkamp, also known as MeanCEO, is an experienced startup founder with an impressive educational background including an MBA and four other higher education degrees. She has over 20 years of work experience across multiple countries, including 5 years as a solopreneur and serial entrepreneur. Throughout her startup experience she has applied for multiple startup grants at the EU level, in the Netherlands and Malta, and her startups received quite a few of those. She’s been living, studying and working in many countries around the globe and her extensive multicultural experience has influenced her immensely.
