Iris Capital, a leading pan-European venture capital firm, announces today the launch of IrisNext, its new fund focusing on digital transformation opportunities, with a first €250 million closing. IrisNext will invest in startups from seed to growth stage, from €1 million up to €30 million, giving Iris Capital the leverage to accelerate and sustain the growth of ambitious European companies at various stages.
Corporates investing in IrisNext’s first closing include industry leaders such as Orange, Publicis and Valeo. They are joined by financial investors and institutions such as Bpifrance and BRED Banque Populaire. IrisNext is the firm’s second generation multi-corporate vehicle, and combines strategic corporates, financial investors, individuals and institutions under a fully independent management.
IrisNext aims to invest in fast growing companies that are reshaping entire industries: from Industry 4.0, the Internet of Things, Cybersecurity and 5G networks, to Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, Cloud Computing and Software Design.
Antoine Garrigues, the Managing Partner and co-founder at Iris Capital stated: “Our mission at Iris Capital is to identify and fuel promising entrepreneurs to help them
grow and scale their businesses across Europe and beyond, notably thanks to our corporates network.”
IrisNext will be mainly invested in Europe, with a focus on France and Germany. The fund will also include an investment strategy outside of Europe, primarily focusing on the US, where Iris Capital can bring added value to startups through its network of corporate backers and strong European anchorage.
IrisNext attracted some of Europe’s leading corporates as investors in the fund. The several success stories from the Iris Capital portfolio, with companies such as Talend, Adjust, Netatmo or Scality, as well as Iris Capital’s global experience and performance were key in the closing of IrisNext´s first round. Iris Capital is headquartered in Paris
