Alexander Samwer

Alexander Samwer (born 1975, in Cologne[1]) is a German technology entrepreneur and investor. In 2018, Alexander founded the privately-held investment firm Arvantis Group with a focus on entrepreneurial investments in the technology, renewable energy and real estate sector. Group companies include Picus Capital (technology), Pacifico Energy Partners (renewable energy) and Augustus Management & Architecture (real estate).[2][3] Picus Capital has emerged as a fast-growing technology investment company with a global portfolio of internet companies.[4]

Career

Before founding Arvantis Group, Alexander co-founded with his brothers the consumer-to-consumer auction house Alando, which was sold to eBay in 1999 for $43 million,[5] then Jamba! which was sold to VeriSign for $270 million in 2004.[6]

With his two brothers he also founded the venture capital company European Founders[7][8] with which they invested in StudiVZ (former German-counterpart to Facebook), MyVideo (German-counterpart to YouTube), Bigpoint Games and several other companies. The Samwer brothers invested in Facebook in 2008, after selling StudiVZ to the Holtzbrinck Group.[9] They also founded the startup studio Rocket Internet headquartered in Berlin with early-stage investments in Europe's largest online fashion company Zalando (publicly listed), online food-delivery company Delivery Hero (publicly listed), Asian e-commerce company Lazada Group (sold to Alibaba) and online meal retailer HelloFresh (publicly listed). In 2013, the Samwer brothers founded 150 million € Global Founders Capital (GFC) fund for early-stage startups.[10] In 2013 Alexander Samwer went his own way business-wise and stopped working for Rocket Internet and Global Founders Capital.[2]

Education

He studied politics at the University of Oxford (from 1995), receiving an MA, and then received an MBA from Harvard Business School.[7]

Personal life

His parents are both in the legal profession.[1] Alexander Samwer is an active supporter of social projects in education and environmental protection.[11] He is a founding member of the climate initiative "Leaders for Climate Action".[12]

References
  1. "Young German start-ups". Jetzt. 12 December 2005. Archived from the original on 28 January 2010. Retrieved 30 January 2010.
  2. "Linkedin profile".
  3. "Alexander Samwer builds his own investment group". Gründerszene. 8 October 2018. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
  4. "PICUS CAPITAL". PICUS CAPITAL. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  5. "EBay kauft Berliner Web-Auktionshaus Alando". Heise (in German). 21 June 1999. Archived from the original on 6 January 2010. Retrieved 30 January 2010.
  6. "Samwer Brothers Acquire Stake in Facebook". Spiegel. 15 January 2008. Retrieved 30 January 2010.
  7. "Alexander's bio". European Founders. Archived from the original on 4 February 2010. Retrieved 30 January 2010.
  8. Crampton, Thomas (4 December 2006). "German brothers break the moldEntrepreneurs cash in after learning fast in Silicon Valley". International Herald Tribune. Archived from the original on 3 November 2012. Retrieved 31 January 2010.
  9. Stöcker, Christian (16 January 2008). "SPIEGEL Interview with Investor Alexander Samwer - 'Facebook Is Already Light Years Ahead'". Spiegel. Retrieved 30 January 2010.
  10. "Rocket Internet is reportedly raising a €1 billion growth fund". Tech.eu. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
  11. "Arvantis Group social responsibility". Company Homepage. 8 November 2019. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
  12. "Deutsche Digitalpromis verbünden sich für den Klimaschutz". Manager Magazin. 26 September 2019. Retrieved 8 November 2019.


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