Mobility startup NOVUS wins 468 Capital as lead investor

NOVUS on its way to becoming a mobility scaleup: successful conclusion of seed round paves the way for urban mobility from Germany

Braunschweig, March 21, 2024 - The Braunschweig-based MobilityTech startup NOVUS has reached a milestone in its seed financing round. Despite the challenging capital market situation, the fundraising team succeeded in attracting renowned business angels as well as a strategic co-investor and the Berlin venture capital fund 468 Capital as lead investor. A convertible was signed at the beginning of March before the official seed closing, marking the start of homologation in Europe and the planned series production from 2025.

The investors

NOVUS recognized that building a global mobility player could not be achieved alone. For this reason, the fundraising team led by CEO René Renger and COO Hannes A. H. Krieger has designed a broad and complementary shareholder ecosystem. In addition to the Advisor & Ambassador Board, the strategic lead investor 468 Capital and a financially strong co-investor, the team has already raised over € 650,000 from business angels for the seed round. The new investors include Unicorn Founder Michael Cassau from Grover as well as Co-Founder Dirk Schwartz and former CFO Stephan Kniewasser from Chrono24. The latter scale-up was financially supported by the LVMH owners around Bernard Arnault and Cristiano Ronaldo, among others. The angel syndicate of NOVUS is complemented by customers from the very beginning such as Nicole Purdy and Michael Holböck, subscription pioneer and Fleetpool co-founder Niels Reimann, former adidas CDO Scott Zalaznik as well as an active Director of Production of a European OEM and other personalities.

Mid seven-figure seed round

With an investment amount in the mid-seven-figure range, the start-up can now push ahead with approvals in the EU and prepare for series production in 2025. Ludwig Ensthaler, General Partner at 468 Capital, and Associate Anton Kornowski are jointly responsible for the investment in the Future Mobility segment. The investment by 468 Capital brings NOVUS an experienced and active player in the German start-up scene on board. The VC has already made successful investments in various development phases and has invested in the mobility industry several times, including in the German battery developer CustomCells, whose CEO Dirk Abendroth also acts as an advisor and angel investor for NOVUS.

Electric motorcycles

The first model of the "NOVUS One" bike combines the agility and simplicity of e-bikes with the performance of motorcycles and is aimed at tapping into a new market. NOVUS will use the capital raised in the coming months to register the light bike, industrialize production and launch it on the DACH and European markets. The financing round will be closed in the coming weeks and further selected angels and co-investors will be integrated into the shareholder ecosystem.

Through the long-term commitment of leading personalities and global networks, NOVUS is positioning itself as a mobility provider from Germany. Despite the growing presence of electric motorcycles on the roads, there are still unanswered questions regarding their broad acceptance in the market. However, this type of electric mobility could represent a real opportunity, particularly in urban environments. The flexibility and environmental friendliness of electric motorcycles could help to have a positive impact on the traffic situation in cities.