Aspire11, led by Pavel Mucha, launched a €500M pension-backed fund to connect long-term pension capital to private markets and venture capital.
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Prague-based global fund Aspire11 has announced the launch of its first €500M pension-backed fund, led by Pavel Mucha, a venture capital investor in the Central and Eastern European region.
The fund is intended to connect innovation with long-term capital to support companies over time.
What to expect from the fund?
Aspire11 aims to provide European pension funds with access to venture capital funds and growth companies, following the Canadian Maple Model. Currently, 0.02 per cent of assets are invested in high-growth startups, resulting in low returns for Europe’s retirees. The fund seeks to change this trend.
Aspire11 launches with a two-part strategy called Tribes and Eternals. Tribes invests in early-stage VC investors and founders focused on emerging technologies and demographic-driven opportunities. Eternals supports companies with a long-term horizon, holding investments for 20 years or more to create generational value.
The fund invests directly in venture capital investors and entrepreneurs without intermediaries. By removing the pressure of short-term exits and cap table changes, the fund allows entrepreneurs and VC investors to focus on long-term business development.
It operates with a long-term horizon, targets private markets, and emphasises fee efficiency and active participation, intending to support pension funds.
Manuel Grossmann, Founding Partner Amino Collective, an early-stage VC focused on health & Biology, mentions, “As an early-stage venture firm focused on healthcare and biology, we know breakthrough science needs patient capital. Aspire11’s model is about investing for the long horizon—backing funds and companies for decades, not just years. By helping unlock European pensions for the innovation-driven economy, we can fuel growth businesses together and ultimately bring stronger returns to pensioners.”
Strengthening Europe’s economy
Aspire11’s analysis finds that redirecting 1 per cent of European pension funds’ assets could release €87B, less than a quarter of their average annual yield, without affecting societal stability. A consistent 1 per cent annual investment over the next decade could generate over €1.1T for the European economy through valuation growth and compounding.
Europe’s economy remains undercapitalised and reliant on foreign investment. According to the European Central Bank, EU pension funds currently allocate 0.02 per cent of assets to venture capital, compared with nearly 2 per cent for US pension funds.
Constantijn van Oranje-Nassau, Special Envoy at Techleap.nl, says, “We congratulate Aspire11 and welcome its intention to invest in Dutch tech companies. Aspire11 is a vehicle to invest Czech pension capital into the European innovation economy. By doing so, it sets an example for the industry that VC is an interesting asset class to allocate considerable amounts of pension capital that can lead to solid financial returns and outsized societal impact.”
Matthijs Welle, CEO and co-founder of unicorn company Mews, mentions, “Europe urgently needs to channel more pension funds to build a full life cycle for startups here, from founding to scaling to going public, rather than losing companies to the US, where liquidity and long-term pension fund investment create a stronger ecosystem.”
“What’s remarkable is that a fund from Eastern Europe is showing the boldness to act, while Western Europe, and certainly the Netherlands, still hesitate. We have the (pension) capital, but we don’t invest it in our technology, and then wonder why companies leave. Our entrepreneurs are world-class, but they need long-term support.”
“If we want Europe to succeed in building the world’s biggest tech companies, we must replace short-term thinking with structural, long-term investment. Aspire11, with their barbell strategy, are bringing this to our country to not only fund but also inspire our local ecosystem.”
Richard Valtr, Founder at Mews, says, “Europe needs to have a much more interlinked capital market and make sure that the countries that create some of the world-beating companies like Mews are not just earning money for US pension funds and endowments but also the places that they came from. At a time when Europe lags behind, missing out on investing in innovative high-growth companies is giving up on a stronger economy and returns.”
Jan Hammer, Partner at Index Ventures, adds, “European tech is entering a new era of entrepreneurship. The ambition to create European-born $50B and $100B companies has shifted from aspiration to reality. Each success paves the way for the next, delivering value for employees, investors, and the economy at large. This momentum presents a significant opportunity for European pension funds—most of which have yet to allocate capital to venture—to share in the growth and prosperity.”
Aspire11 expands leadership
The Aspire11 fund is led by Pavel Mucha, founder of KAYA VC and co-founder of Orbit Capital. He has invested in companies including Rohlik Group, Mews, Booksy, and DocPlanner, and has been an LP in seed VC funds backing firms such as Revolut, PhotoRoom, Incident, and Yoco.
With over 15 years of experience in venture capital and private markets, Mucha brings this expertise to Aspire11’s goal of directing pension capital into long-term economic growth.
Pavel Mucha is joined by Tülin Tokatli as a partner to build and manage the Tribes portfolio. Tokatli brings experience evaluating VC investors from her time at the European Investment Fund (EIF).
Pavel Mucha, founder of Aspire11, says, “Awakening dormant pension capital and connecting it efficiently to VC investors and lifelong builders has turned into a mission for me. Thanks to broader shifts in EU pension and long-term investment rules, pension capital can now engage with the private and venture markets.”
“For years, the pattern has been the same. European private markets have not been deep enough, and their progress has been painfully slow. Entrepreneurs across the continent have been scrambling for patient, long-term capital inside Europe so they can build at scale, while VC investors have been forced to seek liquidity overseas. The contrast with the depth of North American markets has been obvious and has long screamed for change.”
“We designed Aspire11 to back both lifelong business builders and frontier VC investors. With Tribes, we commit ourselves to the next wave of high-conviction VC pickers. Through Eternals, we are ready to support companies not just for years, but decades, to buy them time to win.
“Aspire11 invites entrepreneurs and VC investors to join in growing this vision. With a horizon measured in decades, our goal is to turn dormant pension funds into a force that works for the people who have built and served the country, ensuring that life after work is not only secure but also rich in quality and possibility.”
Partnership with Rentea
Aspire11 is partnering with pension company Rentea, part of the Czech organisation The Partners Group, a major limited partner of the fund. The collaboration aims to show that pension capital placed with VC investors and entrepreneurs can support broad economic growth.
The Partners Group operates in four European countries, serves two million clients, and manages €7B in investments, pensions, and deposits.
Aspire11 plans to gradually expand its operations globally while maintaining a focus on Europe.
Brief about Aspire11
Aspire11 is an investment platform for pension capital. The platform’s initial fund of €500M will be deployed over the next five years into growth-stage companies and VC investors worldwide.
The fund aims to connect long-term pension capital, with an investment horizon of 20 to 30 years, to private markets, allowing pension funds to participate in the growth of companies beyond public markets.
The platform targets growth companies and early-stage VC investors focused on emerging technologies and demographic shifts.
Aspire11 plans to gradually expand its international team and extend its global reach. Pension savers will first gain access through the pension company Rentea.
