DEPO Ventures

DEPO Ventures is a Prague-based venture capital firm founded in 2016 by Michal Ciffra and Petr Šíma, operating what it describes as the largest angel fund in the Central and Eastern Europe region. The third fund, opened in 2022, targets €20 million. DEPO's mission is to transform the CEE tech ecosystem by backing pre-seed founders from Central and Eastern Europe with global ambitions, screening more than 2,000 deals annually across 53 portfolio companies. The firm leads rounds at pre-seed stage with typical check sizes between €100,000 and €500,000, investing at valuations up to €3 million. Portfolio companies include Tatum, Spendee, Readmio, Kardi AI, Eterny, and Blockmate, spanning deep tech, fintech, software, and SaaS. DEPO also manages The DEPO Angels, an international syndicate of 200-plus business angels that co-invests alongside the fund. Venture partners include Pavel Kučera (ex-CTO of Avast), Oldřích Muller (ex-AVG and Socialbakers), Tobiáš Rataj (ex-UIPath and Rossum), and Tomáš Polcar (Professor at Czech Technical University), giving portfolio companies access to operators who have built and scaled significant European technology businesses. DEPO also organizes ENGAGED INVESTMENTS, a leading VC conference for CEE investors and founders, reinforcing its position at the center of the regional startup ecosystem.