Berlin's APX drops its accelerator to focus on investing €55 million in early-stage startups

Berlin-based venture capital firm APX has secured additional funding from its two investors Axel Springer and Porsche, bringing its total investment potential to €55 million. The German firm also announced that it will no longer run its accelerator programme, pivoting to become a “very early-stage” investor. APX insists it’s still ‘not a typical VC’ because the capital structure will remain the same: Axel Springer and Porsche as investors and no one else. “We have always been working closely with our portfolio companies, even after 100 days. Therefore, having a fixed-term program made less and less sense to us. We are already a long-term partner in action with a strong network of hundreds of mentors, experts, portfolio companies, and co-investors,” says Jörg Rheinboldt, Managing Director of APX. The new funding allows for cheques up to €500,000 before Series A. Since launching three years ago, the firm has backed more than 70 startups, and it’s aiming for 200 companies by 2022. Image courtesy of APX