Sebastian Blum has left US-based mobile online media developer Cooliris, where he was vice president of business development, to take up a position as partner at European venture capital firm Active Venture Partners.
Blum was managing director of the US arm of T-Venture, the corporate venturing arm of telecommunications company Deutsche Telekom, from 2006 to 2010, having previously spent more than four years as an investment manager for the unit.
“I left Europe in 2006 and over eight years a lot has changed in the startup scene and great things have happened in Europe,” Blum told Global Corporate Venturing. “I saw lots of entrepreneurs come over [to Silicon Valley] from Europe and…I felt there were lots of things happening in Europe.
“The ecosystem is growing and reaching a level where there are a lot of funds and some great companies there and a lot of things to which I could potentially contribute.”
Blum’s hiring was announced at the same time as that of Georg Stockinger, previously a managing director of Rocket Internet’s Latin America division, who has been appointed as a venture advisor.