European photonics startups get €60M boost from Photonventures fund

Eindhoven-based Photonventures has launched a 60-million-euro fund aimed at early-stage photonic chip startups and scale-ups. The venture capital spinoff from photonics ecosystem facilitator Photondelta plans to raise a total of 100-150 million euros by 2024, to be ‘distributed’ in Series A investments of 1-2.5 million euros. The initial plan is to fund 15 European integrated-photonics companies that have the potential to grow into international winners in their sectors.

“The integrated-photonics industry is growing quickly but is short of investors with the knowledge and funding to back the sector’s ambitions. This is why creating the specialized Photonventures fund marks a significant milestone for the photonics industry. By transferring its existing portfolio, Photondelta was able to leverage its assets to attract more funds and kickstart the creation of Photonventures,” says René Penning de Vries, chairman of Photondelta’s supervisory board.

The Photonventures board consists of Joachim de Sterke (former CFO of Photondelta), Pieter Klinkert (former investment manager at Oost NL) and Rijkman Groenink (former CEO of ABN Amro Bank).