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The Hinterland of Things 2025 made it clear: Europe is in a financing crisis for startups. While billions in venture capital are flowing into young tech companies in the USA, Europe is lagging far behind.
Caroline von Linsingen, Head of IPO & Growth Financing at Deutsche Börse, summarizes the situation: “In Europe, 33 trillion euros in household assets are lying idle – not invested.”
Marie-Helene Ametsreiter, partner at Speedinvest, also sees a great opportunity here: “We have an incredible amount of wealth and capital in Germany. Activating this will start now.”
For startups, this means that capital is actually available, it just needs to get moving.
As traditional venture capital funds are currently acting more cautiously, alternative sources of financing are becoming increasingly important for startups.
Two groups in particular are playing a growing role:
Die figures show the trend:
"Mittelstand is a very important link for startups in early-stage financing."
For startups, this means remaining open to new sources of funding and actively seeking contact with Mittelstand and family offices.
A key point of discussion at Hinterland of Things 2025: How can Mittelstand and startups work better together?
Many Mittelstand companies in Europe are currently under pressure to innovate themselves. New technologies, digitalization and the shortage of skilled workers are forcing them to implement new solutions more quickly. Startups can be the answer here – with fresh ideas, speed and innovative strength.
But there are hurdles – Marie-Helene Ametsreiter is open about it: “European companies are much more reluctant to invest than US companies. Too often they develop internally instead of buying in.”
What it takes:
Carl Luis Rieger from WEPA also emphasizes the strengths of Mittelstand: “Mittelstand can make decisions faster than any corporation.”
Vera Knauer from Orthomol addresses another important point: “As a family entrepreneur, you can’t die – you have to learn to think like an investor.”
And Otto Birnbaum gets to the heart of the investor perspective: “If all investments work, I’m not doing my job properly.”
Conclusion: Courage, speed and a new way of thinking – these are the ingredients for successful cooperation between Mittelstand and startups.
The current financing landscape is a challenge for many founders. But the desire for innovation remains strong.
Max Wittrock (zeroLabs) talks about the reality of entrepreneurship: “There is no oracle that can tell you whether your idea will work, but if you stick with it long enough, you have the best chance.”
Daniel Krauss (Flix) sees competition and long-term investors as the necessary drivers for innovation: “In Italy, the rail system has improved since there has been competition. I believe this is the case everywhere and will also be the case here in Germany.”
Despite all the challenges: Europe is not without opportunities. Over 3.5 million tech talents work in the EU – the same number as in the USA. The number is increasing every year.
There is also movement in new fields of innovation such as defense tech, space tech and artificial intelligence. Although Pip Klöckner warns of risks, he also sees open source models as an opportunity for Germany to catch up in the AI race.
The core message of Hinterland of Things 2025: If Europe does not want to fall behind, it must act now.
In concrete terms, this means:
Dominik Gross, CEO of the Founders Foundation, gets to the heart of the matter in his keynote speech:
“In the end it is about the people who implement it. It’s about the people that take action and it’s about the solution. That’s you, that’s us and we want to focus on this solution.”
The reclaim is possible – if we start it together now.
© 2024 Hinterland of Things
