BackBone Ventures

BackBone Ventures is a Zurich-based pre-seed venture capital firm founded in 2018, with an additional office in Frankfurt. The firm is committed to empowering underrepresented founders in Germany and Switzerland, investing from the Backbone Ventures 5502 Fund — a €20 million pre-seed vehicle launched in September 2022 with strong geographic focus on the DACH region. With approximately $22 million in AUM and a team of 17 across Switzerland and Germany, including 9 partners and 5 venture partners, BackBone combines broad partner coverage with early-stage conviction. The firm has invested in 44 companies across fintech, SaaS, food technology, health technology, cybersecurity, software, and robotics. Check sizes range from $100,000 to $1 million, with 21 seed-stage investments at an average round size of $1.69 million and 4 Series A investments at an average of $7.3 million. The fund invested over $2.3 million specifically in women-led companies, reflecting its commitment to inclusive investing as a measurable practice rather than a stated aspiration. Five new investments were completed in 2025. Starting by investing on a deal-by-deal basis and backing 26 teams over its first four years, BackBone brings a founder's patience to the pre-seed stage. The firm describes its role as being the trusted partner for founders who are still deciding what to build — engaging before conventional investment criteria apply, and providing hands-on guidance through the formative decisions of company creation. Its geographic focus on Germany and Switzerland positions BackBone as the dedicated pre-seed platform for a region with strong engineering talent and a growing early-stage ecosystem.