Our investment process: Your journey from pitch deck to portfolio company

The investment process at bmp Ventures is clearly structured—with the aim of ensuring the most transparent, efficient, and thorough evaluation possible for you as founders and for us as investors. You will receive specific feedback at every stage, so that it is clear from the outset what is going well, where questions remain, and what the next stage might look like.

1. Contact us

Send us your documents—such as your pitch deck, teaser, and/or business plan. You can find the relevant contact persons on our website. You can contact us by email or LinkedIn, or upload the documents via our website. If you need help creating them, our templates are available for you to use, such as a Pitch Deck or financial plan.

2. Short screening of documents

Once we receive your documents, our analysts will carefully review them as part of a short screening process. We will evaluate whether your start-up fits our investment strategy, whether the submitted documents are of sufficient quality, and whether the story is plausible.

3. Initial meeting

If we can envisage working together, we will invite you to an initial pitch meeting. In addition to presenting your idea, we will discuss the business model and financial planning—and, of course, we attach great importance to ensuring that the chemistry is right.

4. In-depth analysis

At this point, at the latest, an investment manager or principal becomes involved and we delve deeper into the case. Topics such as valuation, cap table, financing structure, and, if applicable, co-investors now come into focus. We also take an initial look at the data room and analyze the key documents. Initial reference discussions with customers, suppliers, industry or scientific experts, and existing investors are also part of the process.

5. Pre-IC

Our pre-IC takes place with the management of bmp. The responsible investment manager/principal presents the case, including the findings to date. The goal is to make an informed decision on whether to offer a term sheet.

6. Term Sheet

Following a successful pre-IC, we draw up a Term Sheet that covers the key points of an investment agreement, including company valuation, investment amount, type of investment, and the rights and obligations of the parties. Although the term sheet is not legally binding, it serves as an important basis for further negotiations between all parties.

7. Due diligence

Once the term sheet has been signed by all parties, the due diligence (“DD”) process begins. We put your company through its paces, examining its history as well as its current status and future prospects. Our due diligence is divided into several areas: legal, commercial, financial, technical, and management. All results are summarized in an investment template.

8. Investment Committee

After successful DD, you will present your case to bmp’s investment committee. The final decision on the investment will be made there. With regard to the IBG funds we manage, the bmp IC’s decision must be followed by a positive resolution from IBG’s investment committee (“BTA”). Here, too, you will give a presentation followed by a Q&A session.

9. Investment agreement & closing

Once everything has been decided, we work together on the final contracts: investment agreement, shareholder agreement, and other legally relevant documents. Once these have been completed, notarized, and signed, the investment is paid out.

Tips::

To make the process as streamlined and efficient as possible, keep the following tips in mind when preparing your fundraiser:

• Target the right investors—ideally, your goals and the investors’ focus should match on paper.
• Be fully prepared: your pitch deck, business plan, cap table, etc. should be well thought out, professionally prepared, and well structured. The same applies to a fully populated data room.
• Allow sufficient time: Our investment process usually takes between 3 and 6 months, depending on the maturity of your company, the amount of financing, the number of potential co-investors, and other factors.

Do you have an innovative idea or are you looking for pre-seed, seed, or Series A financing? Then get in touch with us! At bmp Ventures, we are always on the lookout for startups with potential and look forward to receiving your pitch documents.