NRW.BANK
Kavalleriestraße 22, Düsseldorf, Nordrhein-Westfalen, 40213, Germany
Overview
NRW.BANK is the development bank for the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It supports its owner – the state of North Rhine-Westphalia – in fulfilling its tasks, notably in the fields of structural, economic, social and housing policy. NRW.BANK pools the promotion and development programmes of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, the Federal Republic of Germany and the European Union and combines them with its own equity and debt products and advisory services. It offers the full range of financial products in three areas “Economy”, “Housing”, and “Infrastructure/Municipalities”. NRW.BANK operates in a competitively neutral manner as a partner of banks and savings banks.
- Total investments
- 54
- Lead investments
- 8
- Investments · 12mo
- 10
- Active investors
- 9
Sector focus
- Biotechnology
- Semiconductor
Investment portfolio
- JUPUS
Participated · Series A · Jun 2026
JUPUS has developed what it calls Europe’s first AI secretarial service tailored to law firms, automating tasks such as answering client calls, structuring inquiries, preparing cases and drafting legal documents. The platform is positioned to relieve administrative burdens at small and mid-sized law firms and improve lawyers’ ability to focus on substantive work. In 2025 the company reported strong growth—quadrupling annual recurring revenue, tripling headcount, and more than doubling both its user base and the number of cases processed. More than 2,000 lawyers use JUPUS today and the AI handles over 2,000 new legal cases daily, with the company stating it saves firms more than 70 hours per month. JUPUS plans to continue expanding AI capabilities and deepen adoption across Germany and broader Europe using the new funding. The company emphasizes legal-specific features to meet regulatory, privacy and professional requirements distinct from generic AI models.
- NUCLIDIUM
Participated · Series B · May 2026
NUCLIDIUM focuses on copper isotopes for radiotheranostics, using copper-61 for imaging and copper-67 for therapeutic applications. Its lead programs are NU101 for metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer and NU201 for metastatic breast cancer, both slated to begin therapeutic phase 1/2a trials this year. The company reports that diagnostic phase 1/2 trial data to date show strong momentum, according to CEO and co-founder Leila Jaafar. NUCLIDIUM operates sites in Basel and Munich and is currently in the clinical development phase. It plans to expand its international production and manufacturing network for diagnostics and therapy and to develop new target structures in preclinical work to address additional solid tumor types.
- eleQtron
Participated · Series A · May 2026
Founded in 2020 as a spin-off from the University of Siegen, eleQtron develops trapped-ion quantum processors based on its proprietary MAGIC (Magnetic Gradient Induced Coupling) technology that enables microwave-based control of qubits. The company combines research-driven innovation with a stated focus on industrial scaling and commercialisation of quantum systems. eleQtron plans to scale production capacity and expand cloud-based access to its systems to support industrial deployment. Its near-term product and engineering roadmap centers on advancing its hardware platform and making systems accessible via the cloud. The company employs more than 100 people and has partnerships with leading European research and computing centres. Recent funding and grants are intended to accelerate its shift from laboratory development toward industrially usable quantum infrastructure.
- Cellbox Solutions
Participated · Series A · Mar 2026
Founded in 2017 and headquartered in Cologne, Germany, Cellbox Solutions offers patented warm-chain technology that keeps cell samples at stable physiological conditions for up to 48 hours during transit. Its flagship Cellbox™ devices function as portable CO₂ incubators, allowing pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, research institutions, and universities to ship living cells, organoids, and tissues without freezing. More than 300 units are already deployed worldwide, underscoring early commercial traction. The systems are certified and compliant with International Air Transport Association regulations, broadening their applicability to global air transport. Newly raised funds will be used to scale international production and sales operations and to expand use cases across cell and gene therapies, IVF, and other life-science workflows. The company has also strengthened its leadership by appointing Dr. Bernd Muehlenweg as Chief Business Officer and Chief Financial Officer to guide the next growth phase.
- Co-reactive
Participated · Seed · Jan 2026
Founded in 2024, German climatetech startup Co-reactive has built a drop-in, continuous mineralisation process that combines captured CO₂ with minerals such as olivine or metallurgical slags to create carbon-negative supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs). These SCMs allow cement producers to cut clinker content and emissions while maintaining or improving strength and durability. The company works with CO₂ capture providers, raw-material suppliers, cement and concrete producers, and certification bodies to embed its solution in existing production lines. Current laboratory and pilot facilities are being scaled toward a 1,000-ton-per-year demonstration plant targeted for Q2 2026. In parallel, Co-reactive is planning first-of-a-kind industrial plants at “tens-of-thousands-of-tons” capacity starting in 2027, sited directly at cement and steel facilities. The €6.5 million seed round, supplemented by German federal climate-industry funding, provides the capital needed for these scale-up milestones.