Based in Bilbao, Spain, All Iron Ventures (AIV) is an investment vehicle that predominantly invests in startups with marketplace, subscription, and e-commerce business models. In a recent development, AIV has closed its first fund, All Iron Ventures I.
A private affair
AIV claims that this fund is one of the largest “first” venture capital funds raised in Spain, totaling commitments worth €66.5M. In addition, the capital committed by the founding partners of the All Iron Group and other investors brings AIV’s total investment capacity to around €110M.
According to the VC firm, unlike other first launches in Spain and in Europe, AIV’s first fund has been completely raised from private investors. AIV has sought no public support from any Spanish or European institutions.
All Iron Ventures I has attracted the interest of nearly 150 investors including Spanish tech entrepreneurs such as Iñaki Ecenarro (founder of Trovit – sold to Next in 2014 for nearly €80M – and Lernin Games), Salvador García (co-founder and CEO of ebury, in which Banco Santander has recently acquired a 50.1% stake following a €400M investment), and Jose Poza (founder of Ibercom).
All Iron Group
AIV is part of the broader All Iron Group, which includes All Iron RE I, a real estate holding company (socimi, a REIT equivalent) listed in the Spanish alternative stock exchange (BME Growth) since September. It has assets valued at more than €70M euros, bringing the group’s investment firepower to nearly €200M.
All Iron Group was founded by Jon Uriarte and Ander Michelena. In 2009 they founded Ticketbis, a secondary ticketing marketplace that they eventually sold to eBay in 2016 for more than €165M- one of the prominent success stories in the Spanish startup ecosystem.
AIV’s day-to-day operations are managed by co-directors Hugo Fernández-Mardomingo and Diego Recondo. Founded in 2017, AIV has its headquarters in Bilbao, with an office in Madrid and a permanent presence in Barcelona through its venture partner Ecenarro.
Investment strategy
According to AIV, it leads or co-invests in initial rounds, mainly in series A and pre-A, yet with the flexibility to also invest earlier. Typically, its Initial tickets are of up to €2M. It also has the capacity to support portfolio companies in follow-on rounds.
The VC firm’s investment decisions are largely based on capital efficiency and a clear path to profitability. Its current portfolio includes Spanish startups (Jeff, Lookiero, Lingokids, Spotahome or Seedtag, among others), and several other companies in Europe and the Americas such as Barkyn (Portugal), Preply (Ukraine), Refurbed (Austria), Paul Camper (Germany), Kodit (Finland), Rebag (USA), and Zenklub (Brazil).
To date, it has also co-invested with multiple American and European international VCs including Atomico, A16z, General Catalyst, Hoxton, Holtzbrinck, Point Nine, FJ Labs, MMC; Speedinvest, Kleiner Perkins, Local Globe, and Seedcamp.
Image Credits: All Iron Ventures