Startupnews week 8 - 2025

LBBW Venture Capital invests in metergrid. DPhi Space secures CHF 2.1 million. Floy expands seed financing to 9 million euros. Kvantify appoints Dr. Jörg Weiser as new Chairman of the Supervisory Board. muffintech secures EUR 3.5 million for Insurtech. Finalists of the ODDO BHF Young Entrepreneurs Awards. Petsy joins Unleashed by Purina Accelerator. Exuberance acquires Onedot. bezahl.de integrates payment solution. MediaTech Hub Potsdam with new Managing Director. Thomas Wacker becomes CDO at maincubes. German restructuring consultancy secures 3.6 million euros seed.

Financing rounds

LBBW Venture Capital invests in tenant electricity startup metergrid

Landesbank Baden-Württemberg (LBBW) is investing a seven-figure sum in the Stuttgart-based energy start-up metergrid via its investment arm LBBW Venture Capital. The capital is intended to accelerate the expansion of the tenant electricity platform, which gives property owners and tenants access to affordable, locally generated energy. In addition to financing, LBBW is supporting metergrid with market expertise and access to one of the largest real estate portfolios in Germany. Together with partners such as Hager and 468 Capital, metergrid is driving forward its scaling and strengthening its position as a leading provider in the German tenant electricity market. It was only in December 2024 that we announced a successful seed expansion of metergrid reported.

Floy expands seed financing to 9 million euros

The HealthTech startup Floy has expanded its seed financing round to a total of 9 million euros. The original seed original seed round with 5.4 million euros was announced. The current expansion is led by Acurio Ventures and HV Capital and will enable Floy to drive the development of its AI-powered radiology solutions across multiple modalities, secure global regulatory approvals and continue its international expansion.

Deutsche Sanierungsberatung secures 3.6 million euros in seed funding

Deutsche Sanierungsberatung (DSB), an energy consulting company and marketplace for remediation measures, has raised 3.6 million euros in a seed financing round. The round was led by Vireo Ventures, with FJ Labs, IBB Ventures and Saxovent also participating. Founded in 2024 by former Enpal employees, the start-up supports homeowners with energy-efficient renovations via a digital platform. DSB plans to use the fresh capital to expand the platform, automate processes and network smart energy solutions in order to make the renovation of residential buildings simpler, more transparent and more efficient.

DPhi Space secures CHF 2.1 million for simplified space access

Swiss startup DPhi Space has closed a CHF 2.1 million pre-seed financing round. Led by QBIT Capital, Zürcher Kantonalbank, Apprecia Capital and Kickfund also participated. The investment enables the launch of the first mission "Clustergate", an innovative platform that combines several instruments in a standardized satellite container. The integrated hardware and software solution enables real-time data processing directly in space. CEO Aziz Belkhiria emphasizes that Clustergate makes access to space easier and more cost-effective - both for companies expanding existing constellations and for new market participants.

muffintech secures 3.5 million euros for Insurtech

The Berlin-based InsurTech start-up muffintech has raised 3.5 million euros to further develop its AI-supported solutions for insurers and brokers. The technology assists with customer inquiries, policy searches, objection handling and the declaration of insurance benefits. The funding round was led by ff Venture Capital and Techstars, with participation from industry-savvy angel investors and former insurance industry executives.

Personnel

Katja Richter becomes the new Managing Director of MediaTech Hub Potsdam

Katja Richter will take over as Managing Director of MediaTech Hub Potsdam on February 15, 2025, succeeding Andrea Wickleder. With her many years of experience in startup promotion, innovation processes and strategic corporate development, she aims to further expand the hub as a leading location for media technologies. The focus will be on networking companies, start-ups and research, strengthening Potsdam-Babelsberg as a location and developing sustainable innovation projects.

Kvantify appoints Dr. Jörg Weiser as the new Chairman of the Supervisory Board

The Danish TechBio company Kvantify is strengthening its Supervisory Board with the appointment of Dr. Jörg Weiser as Chairman. With his many years of experience in molecular design research and corporate management, he will drive forward Kvantify's strategic development. The company is a pioneer in the combination of quantum computing and drug discovery and enables accelerated drug development through innovative algorithms.

Thomas Wacker becomes CDO at maincubes

Thomas Wacker will join the management team of maincubes, a European data center operator in the DTCP portfolio, as Chief Development Officer (CDO) in February 2025. In his new role, he will be responsible for the strategic planning, design and implementation of data center projects as well as the development of new business opportunities. Previously, he was VP of Design & Build EMEA at VIRTUS Data Centers. Reporting directly to CEO Oliver Menzel, Wacker will drive the company's growth with a focus on sustainable data center solutions and technology innovation.

M & A

Exuberance acquires AI specialist Onedot

The private equity firm Exuberance Capital is acquiring the Swiss AI provider Onedot, a pioneer in automated product data management. Onedot, founded in Zurich in 2014, has already processed over 800 million products and supports retailers, marketplaces and manufacturers in the efficient digitalization of their product data. Founder Bernhard Bicher will remain with the company as CEO. Exuberance CEO Armin Dressler plans to further develop Onedot as PXMize Data AG and integrate it into his growing e-commerce ecosystem. The aim is to further optimize product data processes with AI-supported solutions and expand internationally.

Awards, events and everything else

Finalists of the ODDO BHF Young Entrepreneurs Awards 2025 have been announced

The finalists of the ODDO BHF Young Entrepreneurs Awards 2025 have been announced: eleven outstanding start-ups from Germany, Austria and Switzerland have prevailed against 85 applicants and will be competing for prize money of 50,000 euros on March 19. The finalists include Green Hydrogen Technology (Augsburg) with an innovative waste-to-hydrogen technology, DeepDrive (Garching) with a pioneering dual-rotor electric motor for the automotive industry and tozero (Munich), which recovers lithium and graphite from battery waste. Twinetic (Frankfurt) optimizes energy efficiency through data evaluation, while Cyclize (Stuttgart) converts plastic waste and CO₂ into synthesis gas. Replique (Mannheim) is revolutionizing manufacturing with digital spare parts management, and DivTax (Hamburg) offers an automated solution for withholding tax refunds. In the health tech sector, LipoCheck (Leipzig) is represented with a digital platform for lipoedema sufferers and ZeroEx (Munich) with a carbon sequestration process. QuSinus (Potsdam) develops high-precision signal generators for 6G and quantum computing, while Craftomatic (Uhldingen-Mühlhofen) offers automated time recording for craftsmen. In addition to the Grand Jury Award and the Social Impact Award, a Female Entrepreneurs Award will also be presented for the first time.

Petsy joins Unleashed by Purina Accelerator

The Polish PetTech startup Petsy is the first company from the CEE region to be accepted into the Unleashed by Purina Accelerator program. Since 2019, the program initiated by Nestlé Purina has received over 1,400 applications worldwide and selected only 33 startups. Petsy, a petsitting platform, is planning its international expansion with the support of the program. The company, which recently secured over one million euros in a funding round, is growing 2.6 times annually and serves over 5,000 verified pet sitters. The 20-week program offers mentoring, networking opportunities and financial support of up to CHF 50,000.

bezahl.de integrates payment solution for the European automotive after-sales market

The Aufinity Group's FinTech bezahl.de is expanding its integrated payment solution to the European after-sales market. Mercedes-Benz AG is the first OEM to fully integrate the platform into its XENTRY Com communication solution. In future, customers will receive all information on service orders, including payment invitations and confirmations, directly via the platform. Dealers will benefit from optimized processes and reduced administrative costs. The solution will be rolled out gradually in other European markets, including Germany, Spain and Italy.