Andreas Wisser

Andreas Wisser is the General Counsel and a Managing Director of HV Capital, one of Europe's largest and longest-standing venture capital firms (formerly Holtzbrinck Ventures). Born in Berlin and raised in Koblenz, he studied law at multiple German universities — including Trier, Berlin and Heidelberg (first state exam) — and spent a year at Uppsala University in Sweden. This Nordic connection shaped the early part of his career.

Wisser began practising at the Berlin office of Mannheimer Swartling, a leading Swedish law firm, where he spent roughly four years working on cross-border transactions and corporate law, with secondments to the firm's Helsinki and Stockholm offices. Over time he specialised in venture capital transactions, giving him a practitioner's grasp of the legal machinery behind startup financings.

He joined Holtzbrinck Ventures in 2006 and has been with the firm — now HV Capital — for nearly two decades. As General Counsel he is responsible for the firm's legal affairs across the full investment lifecycle: financing documentation, term sheets and investment agreements, corporate governance, regulatory and fund structuring, and eventual exits. Having been an attorney himself, he emphasises pragmatism and expedient processes while protecting the fund's interests, and positions himself as a legal partner to HV's founders rather than a gatekeeper. Outside work he describes his priorities as "family first," with road biking in summer and cross-country skiing in winter.

It is worth flagging that Wisser's role is legal and operational, not that of a front-line investment partner. He does not source deals or independently write angel checks; the investment thesis and portfolio below describe HV Capital as a firm, which is the relevant context for anyone encountering his name on a deal.

• Multi-stage European tech investor. HV Capital backs companies "from Seed to Series D and beyond," splitting its flagship Fund IX into a Venture vehicle and a Growth vehicle.
• Early-stage checks of €0.5m–€5m across 30–40 planned investments per fund (seed to Series A), and growth entries of €10m–€60m for 10–15 companies up to Series C.
• Deep follow-on capacity — up to ~€100m deployed per company across its life.
• Sector breadth: consumer internet, fintech, B2B marketplaces, enterprise SaaS, mobility, blockchain and sustainability; its portfolio skews heavily toward Consumer and Enterprise Applications.
• Scale and track record: €2.8bn+ AUM, ~250 companies backed, and 13+ unicorns produced.
• ESG-linked mandate: Fund IX targets 33% female C-suite representation across the portfolio and allocates ~30% of the fund to climate/environmental-aligned companies.
• Wisser's own stated focus is not investment selection but "financing documentation, corporate governance and regulatory structure," working to keep deal processes pragmatic and expedient while protecting fund interests.