Breega is a European venture capital firm built by founders, for founders. Created in 2013 by Ben Marrel, François Paulus and Maximilien Bacot — who closed its first fund in 2015 — the firm today manages €700m, backs a portfolio of 110+ startups, ranks itself in the top 10% of best-performing funds and is a certified B Corp.
The thesis is deliberately founder-centric: back exceptional founders, sometimes before they see it in themselves, from pre-Seed to Series A+ across Digital, Climate and Deep Tech in Europe and Africa. Every Breega team member has built or scaled a company, and the firm's headline differentiator is the Scaling Squad — free-of-charge, in-house operational expertise in HR and talent, sales, marketing, communications and growth that acts as an extension of the portfolio company's own team.
Breega now runs six funds. Europe Seed III (€150m+, launched 2023) targets around 30 early-stage European startups with tickets of €500k–€3m, roughly a third earmarked for the UK. Venture II (€250m, closed 2022) backs Series A and B rounds and funded the firm's expansion into Iberia with a Barcelona office led by Isabelle Gallo, Head of European Venture. Africa Seed I — the firm's first mandate outside Europe, with a $75m first close in 2024 — invests pre-seed to seed across Africa from new offices in Lagos and Cape Town, led by partners Melvyn Lubega and Tosin Faniro-Dada.
Portfolio names showcased by the firm include warehouse-robotics unicorn Exotec, quantum-computing pioneer Alice & Bob, fintech Moneybox, carbon-neutral construction platform 011h, benefits platform Coverflex, food-industry climate platform Carbon Maps and HR tool Socium — plus African fintech bets such as Sava, Numida and Klasha, and UK names like Curve. Institutional backers have included the EIF, Bpifrance, Crédit Agricole, Amundi, LCL and Isomer Capital alongside successful entrepreneurs.
The firm cites a striking claim for its model: 70% of Breega-backed startups advance past the Seed stage versus a 35% industry average — a figure attributed to the hands-on Scaling Squad support.
Why it matters for founders
If you want an investor that operates like an extension of your team rather than a boardroom observer, Breega is built exactly for that: the Scaling Squad delivers free operational help in hiring, sales and marketing from people who have done it themselves. With €700m under management, active funds across Europe and Africa, and a thesis covering digital, climate and deep tech from pre-Seed to Series A+, it is one of the few European VCs writing cheques on two continents. Pitch via breega.com — and expect a working relationship, not just capital.