In Germany, there is a gap in financing Deep Technology start-ups, especially for series A and B financing, ie early-stage financing after the seed phase. Omnes Capital, one of the leading private equity and infrastructure investors in Europe based in Paris, with offices in Munich, Zurich and Brussels, is addressing this sector with its “Omnes Deep Tech” fund, inviting especially German companies to gain access to technology Know-how and start ups. On 15 November, Omnes will present its concept of deep-tech financing at a Venture Evening at the Lovelace in Munich. Industry experts provide information about the market, how to gain access to the best start-ups and the key investment criteria for deep-technology companies.
Deep Technology is the trendy name for innovation in the area of complex interconnection of hardware and software in the area of digitalization and industry 4.0. Only 17 percent of venture capital in Germany are currently being invested in deep technology companies, according to a joint analysis by Omnes and Crunchbase of 243 German VC deals since September 2014.
In this market, Omnes is specifically looking for deep-technology start-ups that are in the process of development and internationalization. The French private equity company is aiming to build a portfolio of 15-20 European B2B high-tech start-ups with strong growth potential over the next five years, with a focus on industry and health care. The fund program has a target of EUR 150 million and a first closing is planned at around EUR 80 million towards the beginning of 2018. The active Deep-Tech portfolio includes transactions such as Adents, Scality, Intersec, AT Internet, Qualtera and Sigfox. Omnes achieved successful exits in the market segment with Novaled, 3D Plus and Eve.
The fund, as well as the Omnes Venture Evening, specifically target companies seeking access to technology know-how, as well as French and German technology start-ups. How Novell has closed the financing gap of the deep-technology company Novaled, said Gildas Sorin, CEO of Cynora GmbH and former CEO of Novaled, Michel de Lempdes, Head of Venture Capital and Managing Partner at Omnes and Achim Lederle, Venture Partner at Omnes and Managing Partner at Quantum Partners. In 2001, as a spin-off of the TU Dresden and the Fraunhofer Institute, the specialist manufacturer of organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) Novaled was taken over by the Samsung subsidiary Cheil Industries for the mobile communications industry in 2003; Samsung Electronics participated with another 40 percent.
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