TUM-affiliated UVC Partners has raised a third fund from limited partners including Lanxess to invest in industrial technologies, business-to-business software and mobility.

UVC Partners, the Germany-based venture capital firm affiliated with Technical University of Munich (TUM), unveiled its €150m ($178m) third fund on Tuesday backed by limited partners including specialty chemicals company Lanxess. The co-founders of mobility services provider Flixbus also invested in the fund, as have a range of unnamed institutional investors, family offices, corporates and family businesses. UVC Partners maintains a close relationship with UnternehmerTUM, the centre for innovation and business creation of TUM. The two entities share leadership in Helmut Schönenberger, who is the chief executive of UnternehmerTUM and a managing partner of UVC Partners. The firm’s approach relies on building partnerships with founding teams to drive sustainable growth, rather than only offering capital or operational support. The third fund will continue focusing on European seed and series A-stage startups in the industrial technologies, business-to-business software and mobility sectors. It will invest between $590,000 and $4.7m initially, and up to $17.8m in total per portfolio company. Schönenberger said: “We are already accelerating more than 10% of all German tech startups and serve as a central and open innovation platform for future challenges of leading SMEs and DAX-listed corporations. “[UnternehmerTUM’s] team of 250 people continuously pushes innovation projects with startups and established companies. UVC Partners has access to this network’s strong abilities when it comes to implementation.” UVC Partners previously raised a $100m fund in early 2018 backed by the European Investment Fund, KfW and unnamed limited partners. – Feature image courtesy of UnternehmerTUM

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Thierry Heles

Thierry Heles is the editor of Global University Venturing, host of the Beyond the Breakthrough interview podcast and responsible for the monthly GUV Gazette (sign up here for free).