redalpine closes €222.65 million RAC VIII fund to back about 20 European startups

Swiss venture capital firm redalpine has announced the final close of redalpine Capital VIII (RAC VIII), its early-stage fund, at €222.65 million ($250 million), according to EU-Startups. eu-startups.comEU-Startupseu-startups.comOpen source ↗ The firm said the fund was oversubscribed. New investors in the fund are Aviva Investors, Flexstone Partners and KfW, alongside returning partners.

The fund will back approximately 20 early-stage companies across Europe, selected from more than 5,000 that the firm evaluates each year. Tickets will range from €890k ($1 million) to €13.35 million ($15 million), with Seed and Series A rounds as the primary target.

Software and science focus

redalpine was founded in Zurich in 2006 by molecular biologist Michael Sidler and software entrepreneur Peter Niederhauser. The firm has focused on companies that combine software with science. Half of its investment team are trained scientists, including biologists, physicists and engineers. Its past investments have included fusion energy, robotics and biotechnology.

Michael Sidler said the firm started twenty years ago with the conviction that the most important companies would emerge where software and science meet, and that RAC VIII continues to back such founders early. eu-startups.comEU-Startupseu-startups.comOpen source ↗

Portfolio and first investments

The portfolio spans more than 100 companies, including N26, Proxima Fusion, Basecamp Research and Microagi. Companies backed by the predecessor fund RAC VII, which closed in 2024, have collectively raised over €970 million ($1.1 billion) in follow-on funding. The firm has exited 12 portfolio companies since 2023.

The first RAC VIII portfolio companies include Enact Intelligence, which is developing force intelligence technology for robotics, and Helical, which is building a virtual lab for reproducible drug discovery.

redalpine operates from offices in Zug, Berlin and London, with a presence in Silicon Valley, and manages over €1.24 billion ($1.4 billion) in assets. eu-startups.comEU-Startupseu-startups.comOpen source ↗ The firm says it aims to bring more of the value created by European technology companies back to European investors, including pension funds.