Germany-based early-stage venture capital firm APX has received additional capital from its two limited partners, carmaker Porsche and media group Axel Springer, to bring its fund to €55m ($67m).
The firm was originally launched with the support of both corporates as an accelerator in 2018 – with a view of replacing Axel Springer’s Plug and Play Accelerator and the ability to invest up to €100,000 per startup.
APX is now shutting down the accelerator programme to instead become a long-term investor and is upping potential pre-seed and seed investments to €500,000 ($608,000). It will also increase its follow-on commitments, though it did not offer further details.
To date, the company has invested in more than 70 startups and its goal now is to grow its portfolio to some 200 companies by 2022.
Lutz Meschke, deputy chairman of the executive board and member of the executive board responsible for finance and IT at Porsche, said: “We are convinced that, despite corona and precisely because of the fast transformation of our and other industries, it is important to invest massively in innovative technologies.
“The increase in our engagement in APX is a testament to the confidence we have in its mission to support the most promising startups. We are also convinced that we can gain many valuable insights for the further development of our own corporate venture ecosystem at Porsche.”
