Who doesn't innovate like he isn't. With this idea, the Czech investment group Prime Fund was formed, which in many ways breaks with tradition. It stands out from the multitude of investment companies by its focus. Don't expect any securities or reality type classics. This is where innovation is invested.

“We are particularly interested in innovations that advance technologies, processes or communications, while contributing to sustainability, protecting the environment or setting fairer conditions in the social sphere,” explain the founders of the group Jan Svoboda and Dusan Moskaliev.

If the first name is familiar to you, this is no coincidence. Jan Svoboda, an experienced venture capital investor and founder of the Vertex real estate fund, has also served in the past as marketing and sales manager of several major media outlets, including Czech Television. The second appointee, Dusan Moskaliev, is a respected expert on finance and the banking environment. Over the past 20 years, he has held leading positions in several Czech and foreign banking institutions, and his expertise is also confirmed by the Czech National Bank.

Full-scale shooting: from birth to exit

The Prime Fund supports innovations throughout their lifecycle. Practically from birth to advanced investment rounds. In order to be a system in this, two separate (yet related and cooperating) entities were formed under the Prime Fund heading. Prime Fund Lab and Prime Fund SICAV.

Start-up projects in the (pre) seed investment phase are supported by Prime Fund Lab. It is a private project of the founders, where all sorts of promising projects are given the green light. Those who succeed (and meet the specified conditions) can advance to the Prime Fund SICAV Qualified Investor Fund. The latter focuses on A+ investments in a regulated environment. It supports companies with a proven product, a growing customer base and a solid market position.

Not every innovation is worth the investment

The Prime Fund is certainly not limited to selected areas of business. “Anything can be interesting in terms of investment. Food industry, development, technological fields. The key for us is what the project is innovative in and how its innovations are beneficial in the end. From the point of view of focus, we are not picky, but we are in matters of real benefit,” explains Jan Svoboda.

“We support companies that look to the future not only through the lens of earnings, but sustainability plays a key role in their decision-making. At the same time, we also want the supported projects to have global ambitions. At the moment, we are looking for investment opportunities mainly in the CEE region, but the goals of the founders with whom we want to cooperate should definitely go beyond this region,” says Dusan Moskaliev.

Prompted to great things

Already, the Prime Fund boasts some very interesting investments. One of the flagships is Apetee, a company providing end-to-end digital solutions for gastro businesses. Another successful developer, Foxdeli, moves from Prime Fund Lab to Prime Fund SICAV. Its solutions for tracking shipments are used by the most famous Czech e-shops. In July, Prime Fund SICAV will expand its portfolio with a large investment in recycling.

To make matters worse, Prime Fund recently moved to its own showroom in Karlín, Prague, and as an investor, it is also joining the Disraptors Summit. The largest startup event in the Czech Republic will take place on October 25-26 under their baton. There will be a lot going on around Prime Fund in the coming period, so it would be useful to write “stay tuned”. We will undoubtedly cover the news in one of the next Darkblue Jet editions, until then you can follow them on the LinkedIn profile of Prime Fund Group.

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