SEED Capital Denmark is a Danish venture capital firm with seventy portfolio companies and approximately $50 million under management. It is the largest seed fund (early stage) in Denmark.
The firm manages a Danish government fund of $15 million that has been established to create jobs. The make one-to-two cleantech investments per year. They do not invest high companies that require high capital infusions (such as energy generation projects). The average startup investment made out of this fund is $250,000–$450,000. Later stage seed investments average $700,000.
Our host, Tore Sylvester Jeppesen, a fund investment manager, noted that the entrepreneurial climate is difficult. Danes tend to be ‘salary workers’ he said.
Investments have included:
Expanite: treatment of stainless steel
Abeo: Lightweight concrete
Windar Photonics: Devices that reduce wind turbine maintence costs
GreenGo: Solar power
SiOx: Combining properties of glass and metal to increase efficiencies (used in heat exchangers)
Amminex: Fuel efficiency
Light Extraction: Increasing lumens per watt in lighting