Alpine Space Ventures docks €60 million via the EIF, remains on course to close €160 million fund

Munich-based Alpine Space Ventures has received €60 million via the EIF, surpassing €100 million in committed capital as it rockets towards a target size of €160 million. As the name of the firm implies, Alpine Space Ventures is a private space industry, or NewSpace, -focused fund, founded by former SpaceX, Starlink, and Mynaric exec Bulent Altman and seasoned investor Joram Voelklein.

The funding is backed by InvestEU and the CASSINI investing arm of the European Space programme, as well as by the European Recovery Programme (ERP) of the German government. Existing investors in ASV’s fund include Primepulse, and various family offices. According to Altman, "We are mostly a Series A investor but we will also do seed," with first ticket sizes ranging between $1-5 million, and, "up to $30 million into a single company over multiple rounds".

Technically outside the realm of Alpine Space Ventures, Altman and Voelklein have backed Munich’s Isar Aerospace, which most recently announced a €155 million Series C round, across multiple funding rounds before setting up Alpine Space Ventures.

"I am honoured to have more than 20 of my former SpaceX colleagues, who are now either executives in the company or have critical roles in other space companies, invest in our fund as LPs," says Altman. "This demonstrates our strong industry network and technical expertise. It will also help us to accelerate the commercialization of our portfolio companies' solutions and products. Besides this huge trust of my former colleagues, I am also excited by the investment of the EIF, which shows how strong also the European commitment to newspace is and we are excited to play a defining role in creating some of its best actors.”