Nowadays, Business Angels play a key role in the development of innovation ecosystem. And in this article, I would like to list down top startups business angels, who play a crucial role in the technology sector in Barcelona and in Madrid.
Who are startups business angels?
Startups business angels are individuals who make their investment decisions personally and contribute their capital and time to startups. Business Angels are crucial in the main stages of startups since they are one of the main investors that provide capital to companies in seed phases.
In Spain, there are currently more than 3,000 business angels and more and more are taking an active part in the technology and startups investment. Being startups Business Angels is something very trendy and prestigious in Spain. There are usually two types of startups Business Angels: the professionals who dedicate all their time and resources to invest in startups; and the successful entrepreneurs who, after gaining millions with their startups have become business angels as they already have experience in this field.
And there are two reasons why the number of startups business angels is increasing: the possibility to become a partner in innovative and promising companies, and on the other hand, nowadays there are not so many alternatives for the high-risk investment with the possibility to multiply the capital by 10 times or more.
In Spain, there are three investment criteria that are the most common among Spanish startups business angels: team, market, and business model. However, there are some more important factors to consider.
But let’s look at the main startups business angels in Barcelona and Madrid to understand better their profiles and interests:
42 startups business angels in Barcelona & Madrid you should know
Eneko Knörr has a degree in Business Administration from the University of the Basque Country. Eneko has invested in more than a dozen tech companies and startups. Some of the successful startups he invested in are Ticketbis, Petcoach, and Habitissimo. Currently, Eneko is a mentor of the accelerators Blind 4.0 and Seedrocket. He is also a Founder of Pheidon , AngelClub, Ludei, and the Spanish top 5 hosting company Hostalia, which was acquired by Acens. Eneko focuses and invests more in video games, mobile apps, ecommerce and SaaS technology. His investments range between € 50,000 and € 100,000, provided that the team convinces him and the company has an international expansion plan. Other examples of his investments can be Chicisimo, Masterbranch, Workmunity, Couch Commerce, Vitcord, Cabify or Foundum.
François Derbaix is co-founder and CEO of Indexa Capital as well as co-founder of Aplazame, Soysuper, Rentalia, Bewa7er, and Toprural. He invested in many companies and startups, for example We Are Knitters, Deporvillage, Startupxplore, Novicap, Kantox, Reclamador, Percentil, Tiendeo, Vinogusto, 11870, Masquemedicos, toTombola, Mumumio, Zacatrus!, Comunitae, ReallyLateBooking, Ducksboard, Smooth Bytes, etece.comand many others. François specializes in internet startups, mostly in Spain. He also participates as a mentor in Seedocket, AIEI, and PlugandPlay. Right now, he is interested in investing in Fintech and Insurtech companies, at an early stage.
Yago Arbeloa is the Chairman of Hello Media Group, a creative advertising and marketing agency, which he founded in 2013, also he is a President of the Association of Internet Investors and Entrepreneurs (AIEI). He invested in many startups, among them are We Are Knitters, Lánzanos, Novicap, Zacatrus, Capital Magazine, Diario Qué, Percentil, Safecreative, Ludei, Reclamador, Ducksboard, Smartycontent, Tooble, Wazypark, Reallylatebooking, Influenzia, Coverfy, Iristrace, Indexa Capital or Startupxplore. Yago invests in all types of sectors and startups at an early stage with a finished product, that have carried out some marketing test and which are already billing. The investment ranges between € 50,000 and € 100,000.
Vincent Rosso is the founder of some of the most recognized startups in the Spanish scene, such as BlabBlaCar, SeedPop Capital, and Consentio. He invested in companies such as BlaBlaCar (France), TheBrubaker, Monkimum (US), LetsGoi, SocialCar, People, MicoCar, LeasePilot (US) or Startupxplore. He focuses on companies with B2B models or any App that adds value to B2B2C models in their initial phase or in the first round Seed.
José Marín is a startups business angel. He specializes in the field of marketplaces. José is a co-founder of IG Expansion and FJLabs. He has incubated startups such as DeRemate, OLX, Viajanet, Adoreme, Beepi, Rebagg, Instacarro or Letgo, among many of the ones owned by FJLabs. He also invested in startups like Delivery Hero, eDreams, Bazee, Airbnb, Alibaba, Uber, and Blabacar. He has also participated in the exits of Olapic and Ticketbis. And his average investment is around 100,000 euros.
Carlos Domingo was for more than eight years president and CEO of Telefónica I + D and one of those responsible for Telefónica Digital. He invested in projects like Chicisimo, Startupxlore, Buyfresco, Ongest, Sibaritus, Chicfy, Novicap, Bagonboard, FlieThis, Masterbranch, Offerum, Captio, Zyncro, MailTrack, BlinkBooking, Groopify or Selltag. Also, he is a founder and crypto capitalist in SPiCE VC.
Christopher Pommerening founded and invested in startups like Traity, Percentil, Packlink or Ticketbis, AutoScout24. Currently, he is Managing Partner of Active Venture Partners, member of the Board of Directors of Vinus & Brindis , Polymita Technologies, ReviewPro, Traity, BuyVIP. He is a non Executive co-founder and Advisor of Foundum and Linqia, member of the Venture Committee of ASCRI, Advisor to Gild International and Chairman of the Venturepreneurs’ Organisation & of the Barcelona Entrepreneurship City Commission. He also co-started the Spanish chapter of the Entrepreneurs Organisation (EO) being one of the largest entrepreneur organizations in the world.
Didac Lee is a very well-known technology and startups business angel. He is a board member, co-founder and investor of companies and startups like Tradeinn, Spamina, Fhios, Openshopen, Alpify, Hotelerum, Zyncro, Diveinn.com, Trekkinn.com, Bikeinn.com, Smashinn.com, Motardinn.com, Waveinn.com, Runnerinn.com, Goalinn, Outletinn and Snowinn.com and Intercomgi Argentina. He also founded Scubastore and Galdana Ventures. What is more, Didac is a board member of FC Barcelona where he initially led the Digital Area and currently serves as Vice President of the Foundation. Today he is the CEO of Inspirit, a startup accelerator that also participates in investment in technology-based companies.
Javier is a founder of Loogic and Iniciador. As a partner, he takes active part in the life of the following startups: Sindelantal, Yunait, Brainsins, Yaysi, Worthidea, Linkovery, Omovil, Stop & Walk, Testif, Kubbos, Online Medical Recipe, Afterbanks, dws.io and gamevest.online. He is also a member of the AIEI: Association of Internet Investors and Entrepreneurs.
Hugo Arévalo is a co-founder of Tuenti, Buytheface, Bright & Sharp, and Albau Ventures and a well-known business angel and a Board Member at Jobandtalent. He has invested in other startups such as Deporvillage, Cabify, Ontruck, Fudeat or Glovo and has led the 50M € round of Hawkers. Lately, he is focused on investing in marketplace, fintech and ecommerce, although he is quite opened for opportunities in other sectors.
Felix Ruiz is one of the co-founders of Tuenti and current president of Jobandtalent. He has invested in some of the fastest growing startups in recent years, such as Glovo, Deporvillage, and Buytheface. He usually invests in internationally scalable projects that are not limited to a single market.
José Martín Cabiedes and Luis Martín Cabiedes are the founders of Angel Fund Cabiedes & Partners, a fund that focuses on startups that are at an early stage. Their investment ranges between 150k and 3M €, depending on the project. They have already invested in startups like Socialcar, Tiendeo, Chicfy, Traventia, Aprendum, Cocunat, SUOP, Bewa7er, Dietox, Aplazame, StartUpXplore, JoinUpTaxi, Novicap, Mascoticlub, La Belle Assiete, Thousandwords, Besepa, Tryplaner, Cuidum, Regalador, WeTaCa, TVISO or Kuaderno, among others. Among their successful projects, you may find Privalia, Trovit, Habitissimo, and BlaBlaCar.
Sacha Michaud is an entrepreneur and investor who has founded Inlander, Servidores.com, Binaria, Transword, Latinred, Jdigital or Glovo, among other startups. He usually invests in the pre-seed phase. The average investment is between € 10,000 and € 50,000, he is interested in investing in projects where he can actively contribute. Sasha is very passionate about online world and is very happy to have made a career developing Internet companies. Also, Sacha has participated in the development and growth of companies such as Ozu, Glovo, Meller, TuandCo, Playfulbet, Exoticca or Kompyte. He has also obtained great returns from his investment in Inlander, Servidores.como, Latinred, Betfair, or Ozu.
Adeyemi Ajao is co-founder of companies such as Tuenti or Identified. Also, Ajao invests in startups and some of them are Pixable, Cabify or JobandTalent. Currently, he is a managing partner at Base10 Partners and lead investor at Workday Ventures
Albert Armengol is a CEO and co-founder of Doctoralia. He is also co-founder of Bloguzz, BuzzMN, eConozco and he is a well-known business angel. He has invested in startups like Nuroa, Genoom, Linqia, 3Scale, Offerum, Uvinum, Habitissimo, Medprivé or Nautal. Right now, he is a business angel, who is interested in technology-based startups.
Alberto Knapp is a founder of The Cocktail. He is also a professor at IE Business School, a mentor in Seedrocket and Wayra, and investor of well-known startups such as Iwannagothere, Sindelantal, Stop & Walk, Mumumio, Deporvillage or Mimaleta. He is also partner and advisor at Seaya Ventures, a Venture Capital.
Alex Dantart is a mentor of accelerators such as IMPACT Accelerator, Exputnik, Startup Pirates, h4ckademy, or ITA Innova. He is an investor or co-founder of more than 28 projects related to the Internet and in which he has participated with more than € 30M. For example, he founded Olapic, Klikin, Chronobook, Sync, Sensovida, Wakigami.
Chronobook, Klikin, MedioMinuto, Alice, Grupo Garrampa, Wikout, Spellia, GeoPlay, Netplay, Olapic or Uptimiza are some of the startups in which he has invested so far. He invests in the tech startups in the seed stage.
Almudena Sainz is an investor specialized in the financial sector. Among her current investments are Kantox, Myvalue, SUMA, Colibri or YUMP through Alamir Servicios Financierons. Right now she is interested in fintech companies with disruptive business models, with the international expansion plan, scalable and a solid management team.
Aquilino Peña is a Managing Director of Mediaedge and a Managing Director of Orange Interactive Business, Marketing and Customer Service Director of eresMas / Wanadoo, founder and CEO of submarino.com in Spain and consultant for The Boston Consulting Group. Also, Aquilino is currently a founding partner of Kibo Ventures, venture capital fund for investment in entrepreneurs and digital startups, He has already invested in Minube, OmniDrone, PeerTransfer, CartoDB, Trip4real, Ludei, SinDelantal, BaseKit, Acierto.com, Matrix, Bodeboca, PayCo, Virtual Content or Alice.
Bernardo Hernández is a co-founder of Idealista and participates in the Prince of Asturias Foundation as a member of the jury of scientific-technical research awards. He has invested in several startups, including Tuenti, planetaki, StepOne, Glovo App, 11870, Floresfrescas, Deporvillage, and Fever. Bernardo Hernandez is considered to be one of the leading Spanish startups business angels.
Cesar Bardají is a member of IESE BAN and ESADE BAN and focuses his investments on startups that are in the initial phase of the project. He has invested in startups like Wave Application, Barkibu, Nootric, RedPoints, Top Doctors, Uolala, Green Momit, Global Alumni, Apartum, The Music Dome or FancyBox among others. Some of his successful projects are Habitissimo and Wallapop.
Gonzalo Ruiz founded several companies like FinancialRed, Civeta Investment SA, Cursos.com or Bolsa.com. Also, he is a business angel and invested in Bellevio, Bankimia, Lamasmona, Reclamador, Horoscopo.com, Financialred, Housers, Alterkeys or TouristEye and BelleVIP.
Iñaki Arrola has founded Coches.com, Autodescuentos.com and Vitamina K, a venture capital company that invests in technology-based companies in the initial phases. He has already invested in Chicisimo, Deporvillage, Monkimun, Saluspot, Sindelantal, Startupxplore or Wazypark.
Javier Megias is the CEO and co-founder of Startupxplore, the largest startup, and investor community in Spain. In addition to being a consultant to several startups and investment funds, he is a business angel and a member of the Big Ban Angels Board. He has invested in many startups, but he always highlights Glassy and Chicisimo.
Jesús Monleón has worked for more than seven years in Venture Capital and has founded three companies: emMagister.com, SoftApart, and Offerum. He has invested in Trovit.com, Habitissimo, Chicfy, Redbooth, Marfeel, Birchbox, DADA Company, Tiendeo, Tenvinilo, Ducksboard, Deporvillage, Captio or Tenvinilo.
José Miguel Herrero is the founder of Big Sur Venture Partners and has extensive international experience in the European and North American markets. He has founded and managed companies of various sizes, including American companies listed on Nasdaq. José is a serial entrepreneur, who is interested in early-stage investment in Internet, Software and IT companies. And he has invested in startups like Bidus, Biicode, JoinUpTaxi, Rebagg or MailTrack.
Juan López-Valcárcel is co-founder of Gloo Networks, a technology company currently listed on the London Stock Exchange. Within the digital community, he is very well known for being a mentor in Seedcamp and being a business angel in startups like Traity or BridgeU.
Marek Fodor is a new technologies enthusiast and an active investor in companies such as Kantox, Agroterra, Deporvillage, peerTransfer, Coches.com, Abaenglish, Escapadarural, Peertransfer, Reviwpro or Masterbranch.
Martín Varsavsky has founded seven technology companies during the last 20 years. He is currently the CEO of Prelude Fertility and a co-founder of Jazztel, Prelude Fertility, EINSTEINet, Ya.com or FON. He is also a partner-investor in startups such as Gspace, Joost, Menéame, Netvibes, Plazes, Hipertexual, Hootsuite, Busuu, Tumblr, Menéame, Technorati, Vpod, Wikio, Xing, Zudeo and Index Ventures.
Michael Kleindl is a member of the Boards of Directors of Ticketea, Restaurantes.com, Get Your Hero and Pippa & Jean. In addition, he was co-founder and CEO of AdLINK Internet Media AG, and has invested in companies such as Zanox, MAILPROFILER AG, United MailSolutions AG or Eyewonder Inc.
Miguel Arias has been an entrepreneur and tech startup investor for more than twelve years, with special attention to new technologies. He co-founded MULTIVENT currently he is a mentor, advisor, and professor of entrepreneurship at the IE Business School, Academia Wayra of Telefónica, and SeedRocket. Also, he is a founder of Chamberí Valley and investor of Personall, Reclaimer and Dada Company.
Nicolás Bergareche is a co-founder of Onza Venture Capital Investments SCR, a company dedicated to investing risk capital in companies in the Internet sector in the initial stages. He is also a founding partner of Onza Partners and among the companies, he has invested in you may find Fintonic, Aomm TV, Nativa, Paymet or Bucmi.
Paco Gimena is a co-founder of the startup accelerator Mola.com. Also, he is a mentor and investor of such projects as: Bankimia, Grupea, Salud, Mola Gestion, Playspace, ToTombola, PortBooker, WorkMeter, Wannanotes, TurboMonitor, Emtrics, Neventrum, Aprendum, Bodeboca, Buyfresco, Habitissimo, Etece, Kantox, Notorius, Blackpier, Cognicor, Salud.es, Mindrest, Woowup, Sontra, Divescover or Geniuzz, among many others.
Rafael Garrido is co-founder of eShop and Vitamina K. Rafael invests in technology-based companies in their initial phases. Among companies he invested in you may find Otogami, Chicisimo, The Mad Video, Ludei, YPD Online, Farma Promotions, 8Fit or Mailtrack.
Raúl Aznar is an independent financial advisor and also a founder and vice president of CVBAN, Business Angels Network. In 2013 he won the Best Business Angel Award in Spain. He is very selective when it comes to choosing the startups in which he invests and they include companies like Clay Animaton, Flywire, or PeerTransfer. Also, Raul is a managing partner of AZNAR Patrimonio and CEO of Pandora Lys.
Sébastien Chartier is the founder and CEO of CreaVenture. Also, he is an investor in INDIBA Activ, AgoraNews, Otogami, Dietox, Singularu, The Mad Video, Reclaimer, Splitfy, Hello Umi, Don Lisander, Ventinaser and Pangea.
Tomás Guillén is a General Director of Grupo IFEDES, CEO of Strategy Business Capital SA and Founding President of the Business Angels Association BIG BAN (CV-ban). In 2015 he was named the best business angel of the year. He has invested in many companies and some of them are: Ready Fruit, Institute of Genomic Medicine, Bioncotech, Jugo, Beroomers or Artax Biopharma.
René de Jong is the founder of Don Quijote and Internet Advantage. Also, he is an investor and among his portfolio you may find Justlanded Softonic International, PopPlaces, Lingualia, Reclaimer, Sales layer or eHumanlife.
Juan is the co-founder of Barcelona-based startup Marfeel, Bongo, Weekendesk Iberia, PlanB and is also an advisor in Conector. Also, he is an investor with a high interest in technology startups. Blueknow, Deporvillage, Ongest, Habitissimo, Offerum or Marfeel, Kantox, Deporvillage, Captio and Habitissimo are some of the startups that Juan has invested in.
Vicente Arias has participated in the creation of companies such as Softonic and founded Seedrocket accelerator and Offerum. Also, Vicente is a business angel of numerous startups such as Enalquiler, Salir, Ulabox, Iberestudios or Anpro21.
Axel is the CEO of Vittalia and has more than 20 years of experience in internet businesses. As a business angel he’s got a portfolio of more than 15 companies, including Akamon, Tiendeo, Appszoom or PopPlaces.
Carlos Blanco is one of the best known figures in the Spanish startup ecosystem. Carlos is the founder of a score of startups, including Conector Startup Accelerator, Encomenda and Nuclio. He is also an investor in more than 75 companies. Carlos always invests in projects in the seed phase. And he invests in all types of sectors, although his favorites ones are e-commerce, logistics, mobile app and collaborative economy. Some of the startups Carlos has invested in are Eelp, Boardfy, Citibox, GOI, MAM, PlatanoMelon, Skitic, ScanLoteria, Glovo, Meller, Heygo, Cornerjob, Deliberry, Akamon, Rural Escape, Master Branch, Habitissimo, Palbin, Exelweiss or Infantium.
I hope you found this business angels list useful! If you see that someone is missing or you would like to add information to these descriptions, feel free to share it in the comments section below!
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