Kima Ventures
Kima Ventures is the seed-stage venture capital vehicle of French entrepreneur Xavier Niel, the founder of telecoms group Iliad. Founded in 2010, it is one of the world's most prolific seed investors, backing roughly two to three startups every week with small standardised tickets of around EUR 150,000. It invests at pre-seed and seed stage, sometimes leading and sometimes investing alongside other backers, following a radical-diversification approach across more than 1,500 companies worldwide with a strong concentration in France and Europe. Kima is an evergreen vehicle funded entirely by Xavier Niel's personal capital, with no outside limited partners. Its portfolio has included Wise, Zenly, PayFit, Ledger, Sorare, BeReal and Mistral AI.
Key facts
Recent exits
Coverage notes
1 fund tracked, 17 portfolio companies (11 active · 6 realized). Verified weekly from public filings and deal announcements.
Sector breakdown
17 companiesFunds & portfolio
Every fund Kima Ventures has raised, with its portfolio companies. Hand-checked from public filings.
Kima VenturesVC2010 · 16yr€25M11 active · 6 realized
Unrealized
11 held| Company | Sector | Geo | Entry |
|---|---|---|---|
| SaaS |  France | 2015 | |
| Fintech |  US | 2013 | |
| HealthTech |  UK | 2017 | |
| Fintech | France | 2023 | |
| Cybersecurity | France | 2023 | |
| Fintech | France | 2021 | |
| Fintech | France | 2017 | |
| AI/ML | France | 2023 | |
| HR Tech | France | 2016 | |
| Fintech | France | 2020 | |
| Gaming | France | 2018 |
France· Entry 2015US· Entry 2013UK· Entry 2017France· Entry 2023France· Entry 2023France· Entry 2021France· Entry 2017France· Entry 2023France· Entry 2016France· Entry 2020France· Entry 2018Realized
6 exits| Company | Sector | Geo | Entry | Exit | Type | Buyer | MOIC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TMT | France | 2021 | 2024 | Trade Sale | – | ||
| LegalTech | France | 2016 | 2026 | Trade Sale | – | ||
| Cloud Infrastructure | France | 2020 | 2026 | Trade Sale | – | ||
| Software | France | 2011 | 2012 | Trade Sale | – | ||
| Fintech | UK | 2012 | 2021 | IPO | – | – | |
| TMT | France | 2015 | 2017 | Trade Sale | – |
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About Kima Ventures
Kima Ventures is a Paris-based venture capital firm founded in 2010 by entrepreneurs Xavier Niel and Jeremie Berrebi. It operates as the personal early-stage investment vehicle of Xavier Niel, the founder of telecoms group Iliad, and is structured as a single-limited-partner evergreen entity funded entirely from Niel's own capital rather than a conventional closed-end fund with external limited partners. Because of this structure it does not raise discrete fund vintages or report formal assets under management; instead it deploys a continuous self-replenishing balance sheet. The firm is known as one of the most active seed investors in the world, having backed more than 1,000 startups since inception, and runs a deliberately lean team. It markets itself as a high-frequency business angel.
Investment thesis
Kima Ventures pursues a radical-diversification seed strategy: standardised one-off tickets of around €150,000 into roughly 100 new companies per year, on the same terms and with fast founder-first decisions rather than traction-driven diligence. It is sector-agnostic, backing AI, fintech, software, robotics, cybersecurity, logistics, deep tech and consumer companies, and geography-agnostic, investing globally with a strong French and European core. It typically participates at pre-seed and seed, sometimes leading rounds but often co-investing alongside other funds. The single-limited-partner structure removes fundraising cycles and allows continuous deployment. Value creation is light-touch by design: the firm provides capital plus a founder network and follow-on signalling, leaving operational control with entrepreneurs and relying on portfolio breadth to capture outlier returns.
Recent activity
Recent investments include Mistral AI in artificial intelligence (2023), PennyLane in fintech software, Pigment in enterprise software, and Loft Orbital in space technology (2020). Recent exits include Wise in fintech (2021 public listing), Invibes in advertising technology via public listing, and Shipup in logistics software (2026). The portfolio reflects more than 180 acquisitions and 10 IPOs to date across the firm's high-frequency seed strategy. Detailed buyer names and multiple data available on Pro at €29/month.
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