Pleiade Venture

Pleiade Venture is a French venture capital firm founded in 1999 and based in Paris, with a satellite office at Euratechnologies in Lille — investing across the whole of French territory. Pleiade is part of the Pleiade Investissement platform and positions itself as 'the Entrepreneurs' fund': it is exclusively financed by entrepreneurs who, drawing on their own operational experience, actively contribute to the development of portfolio companies through long-term investment without a fixed exit horizon. The firm manages over EUR 100 million in assets under management and has made 74 investments over its history. Partners include Jean-Michel Renck, Laurent Vernier, Maximilien Oursel, and Constance Rietzler. Pleiade invests from the first funding round through Series A in innovative French companies experiencing accelerating growth, across every sector except biotech and life sciences. Typical checks run EUR 0.3 million to EUR 3 million per transaction, with equity commitments up to EUR 5 million over the life of an investment. The firm has delivered 11 portfolio exits to date; most recent include askR.ai (exit on 26 May 2025) and ArcaScience (Series A investment on 3 September 2025 in business productivity software). Pleiade's defining characteristic is its LP composition: because all capital comes from entrepreneurs rather than institutional sources, the firm can offer portfolio founders a genuine peer network and avoid the exit-horizon pressures that shape traditional fund timelines. This structure lets Pleiade operate as a patient, long-term partner — backing companies through multiple development stages without forcing premature liquidity events. The firm's geographic concentration within France allows its team to maintain close proximity to founders across the entire investment lifecycle.