Investor Profile: Tera Ventures - Thesis, Cheque Size & How to Apply

Tera Ventures is a Tallinn-based venture capital firm founded in 2016 that backs early-stage, born-global digital startups from Estonia, Scandinavia and Central and Eastern Europe. It describes itself as hands-on and founder-friendly, typically leading rounds and supporting its companies with follow-on capital through the early stages.

Thesis

Tera Ventures looks for world-class founders tackling big problems from its home region, with the explicit goal of turning them into industry leaders on the global stage. Estonia is its home market, but it also invests across Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and the Czech Republic. Its team has spent more than a decade helping portfolio companies enter the US, UK and Japanese markets, raise further capital from top-tier venture firms, and collaborate with international corporations.

Sectors & Stages

Tera Ventures invests at pre-seed, seed and Series A. It is industry agnostic, but artificial intelligence and machine learning have been at the core of its focus for more than 15 years, spanning pure enterprise software as well as robotics and deeptech applications. Fintech and security remain priority sectors, alongside SaaS, proptech, healthtech and digital education. It prefers to be the first institutional investor and to lead rounds.

Fund & Cheque Size

Tera Ventures manages around €75 million across its funds. Its second fund, closed in 2021, was reported at around €43 million, backed by the European Investment Fund under the EstFund initiative, LHV Pension Funds and ITOCHU Corporation, among others. Typical tickets are reported at €200,000 to €1.5 million for pre-seed and seed rounds, with the firm committing to follow-on investment in subsequent early rounds.

Notable Portfolio

Tera Ventures' portfolio includes 3D printing marketplace GrabCAD, mobile banking company Monese, parcel terminal maker Cleveron, work management platform Scoro, e-commerce checkout company Montonio, UX copilot Flowstep, legal tech platform Avokaado, job marketplace Jobbatical, supply-chain finance company 4Trans and AI construction monitoring company Brainbase.

Partners & Programs

Tera Ventures was founded by partners Andrus Oks, Stanislav Ivanov and James McDougall, who had previously managed three early-stage funds together. California-based venture partner Erik Anderson, who built startup cohorts at Techstars in London and Wise Guys in Tallinn, and operating partner Martin Hendre complete the senior team. The firm runs no published accelerator programme; instead it supports founders through a global advisory network and hands-on help with international expansion and follow-on fundraising. No published credits or perks programme for founders was found.

How to apply for funding

Founders can reach Tera Ventures through its website. The firm responds best to born-global ambition: a digital product built to compete internationally from day one, a founding team with the skill to execute, and a round at pre-seed or seed stage where Tera Ventures can lead. Evidence of early traction and a clear path to the UK, US or Asian markets will strengthen the pitch.