We're not just funding companies, we're helping Europe stay independent through innovation.Michael Motschmann · on what MIG is really funding
Rohit Yadav sits down with Michael Motschmann, Founder & Managing Partner at MIG Capital, a €1B+ venture platform based in Munich with one of the most unique LP bases in Europe: everyday retail investors. From backing BioNTech at inception to building Fund 18, Michael has pioneered a people-first venture model, well before "democratization" became a buzzword.
We unpack:
- The founding of BioNTech, and how MIG helped shape one of the most impactful companies in medical history.
- Why MIG raises venture capital from retail investors, not institutions.
- How Germany's banking DNA shaped its late start in VC.
- What Europe needs to compete globally: capital market reform, defense tech, and homegrown IPOs.
- How deep tech, from semiconductors to oncology, will anchor Europe's next growth wave.
- Why AI is a tool, not a substitute, for founders, scientists, or fund managers.
We also dive into:
- Why family offices often understand risk better than institutions.
- The "hidden potential" of Germany's scientific ecosystem.
- How capital flows need to change to support European strategic autonomy.
- Why now is the right time to enter venture, despite macro uncertainty.
- What every investor can learn from MIG's 20-year journey through cycles, exits, and conviction.
COMPANIES & FUNDS
MIG Capital
Munich-based deep tech investor, life sciences, energy efficiency and semiconductors, focused on the German-speaking region and wider Europe.
BioNTech
Founded with MIG in 2008 as an oncology company.
Ganymed → Astellas
The first company of the two scientific founders, backed in 2007, developing a monoclonal antibody against cancer; sold to Astellas in 2016 for a total purchase price of up to 1.3 billion.
Buyer of the semiconductor company MIG formed out of the idea of two Harvard postdocs to cut wafer production costs by 50% or more; it took about seven years to get there.
PEOPLE
Michael Motschmann
Founder & Managing Partner, MIG Capital.
Investments thought leader, Big Book of VC.
CONTEXT
Neue Markt collapse
The 2000–2001 crash that left German venture devastated when MIG started in 2004.
Basel rules
Basel I, II and III tightened the bank–customer relationship from the 1980s, and venture capital became a more prominent substitute source of finance.
Democratisation of Venture Capital →
The full written snapshot of this interview on the Rethink site.