Verve Ventures
Gubelstrasse 12, Zug, 6300, Switzerland
Overview
Verve Ventures is a European startup investment platform for qualified and institutional investors. Their fully digital platform enables private investors to build a diversified portfolio with investments starting at CHF/EUR 10'000. Since its launch in 2010, Verve Ventures has invested more than EUR 130 million in over 100 startups. Their community consists of 5’000 registered qualified private investors, family offices, and pension funds. Several institutional investors such as a large Swiss pension fund and numerous corporates also rely on their expertise to invest in promising startups. Verve Ventures is backed by Switzerland's third-largest bank, Zürcher Kantonalbank. They have a dedicated investment team based in Zurich, Lausanne, Berlin, Paris, and Cambridge, that screens thousands of startups each year and selects the top 1% after a rigorous due diligence process. They are reshaping the European venture capital landscape and granting investors superior access to this traditionally intransparent asset class. They source the best deals, and structure rounds, and enable their investors to participate in competitive startup deals.
- Total investments
- 149
- Lead investments
- 29
- Investments · 12mo
- 12
- Active investors
- 8
Sector focus
- Business Development
- Consulting
- Financial Services
- FinTech
- Venture Capital
Investment portfolio
- Aylight
Participated · Seed · Jul 2026
Aylight develops chip-scale multiwavelength lasers that generate multiple precisely spaced wavelengths from a single chip using a frequency-modulated comb (FM comb) architecture. The design reduces the need for multiple discrete lasers in optical communication systems and is intended to be manufacturable in existing semiconductor photonics foundries. The company targets AI data-center optical interconnects and high-precision frequency-modulated continuous-wave (FMCW) sensing for applications such as semiconductor inspection, metrology, industrial automation, and precision robotics. Aylight was founded in 2025 by Bahareh Marzban and Dmitry Kazakov following research at ETH Zürich. The startup plans to use its recent pre-seed funding to build its first foundry prototypes and grow its R&D team as it moves from research toward initial products.
- Atana Elements
Participated · Seed · Jun 2026
Atana Elements uses proprietary AI and machine-learning models combined with deep subsurface expertise to identify and de-risk overlooked mineral deposits. The company claims it can accelerate discovery timelines to roughly 22 months, compared with the typical five-to-ten year cadence. Atana is currently focused on lithium exploration, with plans to expand into helium, hydrogen, and copper. It already has projects underway across the EU and the Americas. The company is led by CEO Thomas Wilson. Financially, Atana recently closed a $27.5 million seed round from Overture Ventures to support its ongoing exploration and growth activities.
- encosa
Participated · Seed · Jun 2026
encosa offers a complete batteries storage solution for mid-sized companies, handling selection, installation, commissioning and ongoing operation while combining hardware, financing options (purchase, rental or lease) and a proprietary AI-supported software platform. Its platform integrates behind-the-meter cost savings and front-of-the-meter market participation to optimize economic operation. Typical customers are energy-intensive industries such as chemical, glass and machinery, and encosa reports that solutions typically pay back within 18 months to five years. Customers receive immediate lower energy costs, additional revenue from feed-in, CO2 reductions and ESG reporting benefits. The company was founded in 2024 and is headquartered in Munich, and the team includes Sebastian Becker and Sascha Koberstaedt.
- Groove Quantum
Participated · Seed · Apr 2026
Groove Quantum develops germanium-based semiconductor spin-qubit processors built from extendible, repeatable unit cells operated in parallel to enable scalable, high-fidelity quantum systems. The company announced a successful demonstration of an 18-qubit semiconductor processor, which it describes as a new state-of-the-art benchmark for the industry. Its technology emphasizes compatibility with standard semiconductor manufacturing techniques to facilitate scaling qubit counts via existing foundry processes. Near-term commercial plans include launching a fully integrated quantum computer featuring a spin qubit in germanium processor. The recent financing and EIC Accelerator grant are intended to support moving the technology from TRL 6 to TRL 8, grow the team, and begin industrial-grade manufacturing. Groove Quantum was spun out of QuTech and is led by founder and CEO Anne-Marije Zwerver.
- Metafuels
Participated · Series A · Feb 2026
Metafuels develops sustainable aviation fuel by converting renewable methanol into drop-in jet fuel using its proprietary methanol-to-jet process, aerobrew. The company is advancing the Turbe project—through subsidiary Metafuels Nederland B.V.—as the first commercial deployment of aerobrew, to be sited at the Evos terminal in the Port of Rotterdam. Metafuels received a €1.92 million grant to fund FEED, permitting, commercial preparation, and activities toward a final investment decision. The company targets initial production from 2030 and positions the Rotterdam facility as a blueprint for future large-scale plants to scale synthetic fuel production in Europe. Metafuels highlights compatibility of its product with existing aircraft and infrastructure and alignment with emerging regulatory frameworks such as ReFuelEU Aviation.