In this report, we aim to share our enthusiasm on the German tech and Venture Capital ecosystem from the perspective of an international VC fund. We aim to share our excitement about Germany and express our belief that the ecosystem is gaining momentum. We also look at a few particularities that make the German market unique such as its decentralization, the impact of Rocket Internet on talent, differences in deal terms and media for equity. Finally, we end with a deep dive on VC’s and other investors making up the ecosystem. At White Star Capital, we made our first major investment in Germany by co-leading Clark’s Series B round earlier this year. We are proud of the progress of the company so far and are looking forward backing many more. We hope you enjoy reading this report!

1. GERMAN VENTURE CAPITAL
LANDSCAPE

2. 2
A WORD FROM OUR GERMAN COVERAGE TEAM
NICK STOCKS
Partner
Authors/ Contributors
In this report, we aim to share our enthusiasm on the German tech and
Venture Capital ecosystem from the perspective of an international VC
fund.
We aim to share our excitement about Germany and express our belief
that the ecosystem is gaining momentum. We also look at a few
particularities that make the German market unique such as its
decentralization, the impact of Rocket Internet on talent, differences in
deal terms and media for equity. Finally, we end with a deep dive on
VC’s and other investors making up the ecosystem.
At White Star Capital, we made our first major investment in Germany by
co-leading Clark’s Series B round earlier this year. We are proud of the
progress of the company so far and are looking forward backing many
more.
We hope you enjoy reading this report!
External Data Sources
Allen Duoji
Analyst
“ Germany is a magnet for founders and
investors, and the ecosystem has reached a
high degree of visibility.’’
Sanjay Zimmermann
Associate
“Germany’s unique and mature ecosystem is
froth with opportunities for those willing to
take the time to understand it ”
Karolina Mrozkova
Analyst
“Undisputedly a nation with the largest
economy in Europe, Germany is also one of
the World leaders in machinery, automotive,
energy, aviation, and healthcare."
MATTHIEU LATTES
Partner

3. TABLE OF CONTENTS
3
1. Overview: Why We Are Excited About Germany Page 4
2. The Germany ecosystem is gaining momentum Page 13
3. Particularities of the German ecosystem Page 18
4. Deep Dive on Germany VCs Page 23
5. Glossary of German VC funds Page 27

4. OVERVIEW: WHY WE ARE
EXCITED ABOUT GERMANY

5. GERMAN MARKET IN EUROPE
Germany is the second largest market in terms of capital invested & number of exits
Source: Dealroom.co
Source: CBInsights
3.2
5.5
9.1
11.8
22.0
1.1
0.8
2.8
3.1
5.1
Capital invested in ($B) from the past five years
2014-2017 2018 YTD
22
31
53
62
98
Number of IPOs and M&A since 2014
Over the past five years, Germany had a total of $14.9B
invested into its startup ecosystem, making it the second
largest in Europe in terms of capital invested.
Germany also has the second highest number for IPOs,
and M&A exits from VC-backed and non-VC-backed
companies in the EU.
5

6. VC FUNDING GROWTH IN GERMANY
Steadily growing in deal volume and Number
In total over the past five years, c.2000 deals have been
closed by VCs in Germany. Top financed industries
include enterprise software, media, fintech, and
marketing.
Since 2013, Berlin remains the central hub in terms of
total VC-backed funding with 63% of the share, followed
by Munich, Hamburg, and Frankfurt respectively.
6
63%
14%
8%
3%
12%
% of deals per city since 2013
Berlin Munich Hamburg Frankfurt Other
Source: Dealroom.co
Source: CBInsights
2.0
3.3
2.2
3.4 3.6
270 303
451
597
371
-600
-100
400
0.0
0.6
1.2
1.8
2.4
3.0
3.6
4.2
4.8
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 YTD
Funding amount in ($)Bn Number of deals
German VC-Backed deals

7. The number of German exits has been steadily
rising year-over-year since 2009
Source: CBInsights
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
% of German deal volume per stage, per year
Seed Series A Series B Series C Series D+
In 2018, a record of 16 companies entered the public
market. While over the last decade, broader M&A
activity has also risen to record high levels for VC-backed
and non VC-backed companies
The stable split amongst startups represents the
relative maturity of the German VC ecosystem at
various stages over the last decade.
DEAL ACTIVITY PER STAGE
Maturing ecosystem with steady rise in exits
7
30 40
118
145
160
239
271
360
540
517
0 1 1 0
2
4
6
7
5
16
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
YTD
M&A IPO

8. U.K.
Canada
Germany
France
Israel
$3.4B
$1.8B
$2.0B
$1.1B
145
262
175
97
Region Total Deal Amount (H1 18) Total Deal Volume (H1 18)
Source: CBInsights
Source: Western Hemisphere only, VC deals Angel round through Series E+
CAGR Deal Volume
(H1 16 – H1 18)
+27.1%
+23.7%
+75.4%
+20.7%
U.S $52.1B 2,224 +9.8%
8
$1.7B 125 +35.9%
SIZING UP GERMANY IN A GLOBAL CONTEXT
Undoubtedly one of the largest ecosystems in Europe

9. Series B
share of deals
Series C
share of deals
Series E
share of deals
Seed/Angel
share of deals
Series A
share of deals
Series D
share of deals
Source: CBInsights
49%
A lower % of investments in the seed stages compared
to other countries indicates Germany as having one of
the more mature ecosystems. While the UK and France
see quite a lot of activity at the seed stage, Germany
has a disproportionate share of deals at the Series A
and B stage.
24%
13%
7%
3%
3%
49%
24%
13%
7%
3%
3%
49%
28%
11%
6%
3%
2%
62%
22%
10%
4%
1%
1%
69%
18%
8%
3%
1%
1%
71%
19%
6%
2%
1%
1%
DEAL SHARE BY INVESTMENT STAGE; PAST 3 YEARS
Relatively mature ecosystem, with disproportionate share of Series A and B rounds
9

10. Stage:
Sector:
Stage:
Sector:
Stage:
Sector:
Stage:
Sector:
Stage:
Sector:
Stage:
Sector:
$350M
$1000M
$336M
Stage:
Sector:
$180M$545M
$174M
Legend
Stage Sector
Seed Fintech AI
Series A Software Ecommerce
Series B Automotive
Series C
Growth Fund
$180M
LATEST GERMAN VC FUND CLOSINGS*
White Star Capital plans on playing an active role in investing in German Series A and B rounds
10
*Based on German domiciled funds (with the exception of White Star Capital)
Stage:
Sector:
$261M

11. Deep and Frontier
Tech
Disruptive
Commerce
Digitalization of
Finance
Examples Examples Examples
• Cybersecurity
• Autonomous Vehicles
• Robotics
• Genomics
• VR & AR
• Quantum Computing
• Peer to peer lending
• Credit and consumer
focused business
• Consumer finance
• Insurance
• Loyalty
• Fashion
• E-commerce
• Foodtech
• Travel
• Mobility
CLOSER LOOK AT THRIVING SECTORS IN GERMANY
Strong alignment with White Star Capital’s investment areas of focus
11

12. In 2017, Germany overtook the UK and is now home to the
largest number of professional developers.
837K
814K
467K
368K
310K
293K
268K 255K
176K 172K
708K
745K
2017 2016
Source: Stack Overflow
TU Munich is ranked as one of the top-rated European
computer science institutions and as an entrepreneur
school along with Karlsruhe Institute of Technology.
Other Top Universities in Germany
GERMANY’S DEEP TALENT POOL
One of the strongest pools for deep tech, technical and entrepreneurial talent in Europe
Number of professional developers by country
12

13. GERMAN ECOSYSTEM IS
GAINING MOMENTUM

14. $45M*
$332M
$22M*
$472M
$738M
$373M
$436M
2017 2018
*Total funding received at time of acquisition – acquisition value undisclosed
Source: Tracxn
Concardis
Founded in 2003
Retail Enterprise Application
Hesse
Qundis
Founded in 2009
Energy Enterprise Application
Erfurt
SQS
Founded in 1982
Software testing services
Cologne
proALPHA
Founded in 1992
Cloud-based ERP Software
Weilerbach
Finanzcheck.de
Founded in 2010
Fintech
Hamburg
Navabi
Founded in 2007
Fashion
Aachen
Lendico
Founded in 2013
Fintech
Berlin
$332M
VC-BACKED TECH ACQUISITIONS
Largest acquisitions in 2017 and 2018
14
$300M
Relayr
Founded in 2013
IoT Platforms
Berlin

15. 15
UNUSUALLY HIGH NUMBER OF IPOS IN 2018
434
420
208
174
115 106
88 83
62 55 50
19 13 12 7
5,200
German based companies that IPOed in 2018 (IPO proceeds- $M)
Source: CBInsights
Note – Companies are combination of VC-backed & non-VC backed

16. 16
Source: CBInsights
Note: Excludes funds raised during an IPO
New additions
in 2018
Total funding in $M
1,856
1,060
497 468
370
300
237 215 198 191 171 156 146 113
TOP FUNDED GERMAN TECH COMPANIES
Companies which received funding in excess of $100m over the last ten years

17. VC-backed with an international investor Exits to international investors have
significantly increased over the years
48%
40%
37%
35%
24%
20%
Source: Crunchbase Pro (2013-2016)
Source: Thomson One, Mergermarket, Crunchbase, press releases
2017
2014
2015
2016
Percentage of exits by origin of investor from 2014-2017
FOREIGN VC INVESTMENT
High levels of foreign VC investment & exits to foreign Investors
46%
43%
61%
61%
54%
57%
39%
39%
German Investors International Investors
17

18. PARTICULARITIES OF THE
GERMAN ECOSYSTEM

19. GEOGRAPHICALLY DECENTRALIZED
While Berlin is a core hub, Germany is far less centralized than the UK and France
58%
54%
42%
London Paris Berlin
51%
49%
34%
London Paris Berlin
% of total funded startups
in given hub
% of nationwide active
members in tech related
meetup group
Germany’s economy and population density is far more
dispersed than that of the France and the UK
Source:Eupedia
Source: MeetupSource: Traxcn
After Berlin: Munich,
Hamburg and Frankfurt are
important hubs
VC funds are
decentralized as well
14%
8%
3%
Munich Hamburg Frankfurt
Source: Traxcn
43%
36%
21%
Berlin Munich Other
Source: Pitchbook
19
% of total Startups in Germany

20. ROCKET INTERNET’S IMPACT ON TALENT
Talent flowing out of Rocket Internet backed startups has fueled a new generation of successful founders
10 out of Germany’s largest 22 recent startups which are not currently Rocket Internet-backed
were founded by entrepreneurs who used to work for a Rocket Internet-backed startup*
Source: Traxcn
*Based on total funding, Startups founded in last 5 years, excluding Rocket Internet Backed startups
$0m
$50m
$100m
$150m
$200m
$250m
Totalfundingtodate(logosofexRocketInternetstart-ups)
20

21. DEAL STRUCTURE & PROCESSES
A few notable differences between North American and German deal terms and processes
North America Germany
Preferred legal form Delaware Corporation (Inc.)
GmbH (German: Gesellshaft mit beschrankter
Haftung – limited liability company)
Authorization process for
new shares to be issued
Approved by the corporation’s board of
directors
Requires a shareholders’ resolution to be
adopted by at least 75% of the votes cast
Officializing of significant
measures: company
formation, investment,
and exit
Done via e-signing of final legal docs
• All significant measures require notarization
and registration in the local public
commercial register
• Representatives of the shareholders and
company must be physically present in front
of a German civil notary for the reading of
the entire notarial deed
Board structure
CEO, other founders and employees can be
represented along with investors and
independent board members
Only investors and independent board
members can be represented
Source: Daily Journal
21

22. MEDIA FOR EQUITY PROGRAMS
A common fundraising alternative for German B2C startups requiring large media campaigns
Top 3 – European Media for Equity players are German
Source: Dealroom
Overview of investors and successful casesWhat is Media for equity?
In exchange for company shares or convertible notes in a
Startup, Media firms offer advertising space at a steep
discount over a period of 6 to 24 months to the Startup
• Startups benefit from avoiding hefty cash outlays for media
• Advertisers benefit from diversifying their revenue base
• VC’s benefit from minimized risk of media inefficiencies
• While a creative alternative, this may not always be an
optimal or relevant solution in every scenario
Why use Media for equity?
22

23. DEEP DIVE ON GERMAN VCS

24. Bonn
Cologne
Munich
Berlin
Source: CBInsights
Note: Rankings are per fund, not total AUM per firm
LEGEND Fund Size ($M)
300+
200-300
100-200
< 100
A SNAPSHOT OF GERMAN VC FUNDS
Based on most recent fund size
24

25. CVC Top Sectors
Direct
Investment
Investment
in VC fund
Select German
Investments
E-commerce, IoT, AI
ICT
Digital Media & IT
Life Sciences & ICT
Media Partnerships & ICT
Media Partnerships & ICT
Medical Device, Diagnostics,
& Digital Health
E-commerce, Art & Fashion
Online Video, Media &Pub Tech
Mobility, Energy & AI
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Source: CBInsights
MOST ACTIVE CVCS IN GERMANY
Media for equity players are amongst the most active corporate VCs
25

26. LEGEND # of German portfolio companies
15+
8-14
1-7
Source: Tracxn
Investors
# of portfolio
companies
MOST ACTIVE FOREIGN VCS
VCs with Foreign Head Quarters which participated in the most VC deals in Germany since 2011
26
Investor
# of portfolio
companies
Investors
# of portfolio
companies
Investor
# of portfolio
companies
Investors # of portfolio
companies
Investors
# of portfolio
companies

27. Investor
Funded
year
Min
check
size (€)
Max
check
size (€)
Investments
2017/2018*
Region Stage Sectors
2005 N/A 1M 233 DACH Pre-Seed to Seed Seed investments
2013 200K 10M 78 World Pre-Seed B2C and B2B-Tech: Marketplaces, Subscription, SaaS
1997 250K 1M 62 Germany Pre-Seed to Series A Software, Digital, Consumer Internet, Life Sciences, Industrial Technologies
2011 200K 1.5M 42 Europe Pre-Seed to Series A SaaS, Marketplaces
2000 250K 3.5M 39 Europe Seed to Series A
Digital and industrial topics: Fintech, Marketplaces, Software, Industry 4.0,
IoT
2012 300K 10M 37 World Seed to Series A
Currently focuses on Digital Health, Mobility, Education, Industry 4.0, E-
Sports
1997 200K 10M 35 Germany Pre-Seed to Later Stage
Internet/Software/Mobile, Consumer Products, Industry Technologies,
Cleantech, Lifescience
2000 50K 40M 30 World Pre-Seed to Series A Internet, Technology
1998 500K 6M 29 Europe Seed to Series A
Sector-agnostic, products and services should be scalable and future-
oriented
2011 50K 4M 25 Europe Pre-Seed to Later Stage Marketplaces, Proptech, Insurtech, Digital Health
2012 500K 3M 23 Europe Pre-Seed to Seed Sector-agnostic, Focus: Consumer-Tech, scalable B2B models
1999 500K 6M 23 Europe Seed to Later Stage Cleantech, Software and IT, Industry 4.0 and new materials
2015 300K 1M 23 Europe Series A B2C Internet and Mobile (focus on marketplaces)
2012 500K 3M 22 Europe Seed to Series B Enterprise Software, B2B SaaS, Enabling Technologies, IoT, IT Security
2016 50K 500K 21 World Pre-Seed to Seed Opportunity-driven: open to all areas
GLOSSARY OF GERMAN VC FUNDS
Page 1 of 4
Source: BerlinValley
27*Includes investments outside of Germany

28. 2828
Investor
Funded
year
Min
check
size (€)
Max
check
size (€)
Investments
2017/2018*
Region Stage Sectors
2009 500K 30M 20 World Seed to Later Stage Consumer Internet, Digital Services, Software & Technology
2006 50K 500K 19 Europe Pre-Seed to Series A Smart City, Future Commerce, Prop/Construction-Tech, Fintech, IoT
2016 500K 5M 15 Germany Series A to Series B Sector-agnostic
1998 500K 30M 15 World Seed to Later Stage Sector-agnostic, primarily consumer-internet & software area
2012 50K 5M 15 DACH
Pre-Seed to Later
Stage
Secondary shares, E-Commerce and Marketplaces, Fintech, Adtech, Blockchain-
Infrastructure
n/a n/a n/a 15 World Seed to Later Stage
Network, Infrastructure-technology, Marketplaces, Decentralized protocol, open
software
2003 500K 30M 15 Europe Pre-Seed to Series B Industry 4.0, DLT, Digital Health
2013 300K 20M 15 Europe Series A B2B SaaS
2016 250K 1M 15 Europe Pre-Seed to Seed AI/ML, Enterprise Software
2013 50K 250K 15 DACH Pre-Seed to Seed B2B SaaS, Enterprise Software, Developer Tools
2014 250K 2M 13 Europe Seed to Series A Fintech, Insurtech, Digital Health, E-Learning, Proptech
1997 250K 5M 12 Europe Seed to Series B Fintech, Insurtech, Mobility & Logistics, Blockchain & Crypto, industry 4.0 & IoT
2009 250K 2.5M 12 DACH Seed to Later Stage Media-related startups
2016 500K 5M 12 World Pre-Seed to Series A
Decentralization of markets, empowerment of individuals, liberation of data.
Thesis yes, sectors no.
Source: BerlinValley
GLOSSARY OF GERMAN VC FUNDS
Page 2 of 4
*Includes investments outside of Germany

29. 2929
Investor
Funded
year
Min check
size (€)
Max check
size (€)
Investments
2017/2018*
Region Stage Sectors
2010 200K 2.5M 12 Europe Seed to Series A B2B-Software, Enterprise, SaaS, AI, IoT/Industry 4.0, Robotics, Security
2014 500K 5M 11 Europe Pre-Seed to Series A Fintech, Insurtech, Asset Management
2017 50K n/a 10+ Europe Seed B2B, Europa
2013 1M 50M 10 World Series A to Later Stage Consumer, B2B, Fintech, Mobility, Blockchain
2015 500K 1.5M 10 Europe Seed to Series A
Industrial IoT, Machine Intelligence, Frontier Hardware, New-Age Enterprise
Software, Cyber Security
2015 5M 25M 10 Europe Series B to Later Stage Content-driven models e-commerce, marketplaces, digital networks
2014 250K 5M 10 World Seed to Series B
Personal Mobility, Logistics, B2B, Fintech, Insurtech, Regtech, Proptech,
Construction Tech, & B2B SaaS
2012 N/A N/A 10 Germany Pre-Seed to Series A Meta-platforms, E-Commerce, SaaS, B2B
2013 500K 3M 10 n/a
Pre-Seed to Later
Stage
Enterprise B2B, IoT, Property Tech
1999 1M 20M 9 World Series A to Series B Sector-agnostic Investments in Internet companies, especially in B2C startups
2011 100K n/a 9 Europe Seed Deep-Tech, Food
2010 100K 500K 9 DACH Pre-Seed to Series A
Attractive market segments, not yet unlocked by the efficiencies of the
internet
2015 500K 2.5M 9 Europe Seed to Series A B2B Enterprise Software, Industrial Technologies,
1999 1M 3M 9 DACH Seed to Later Stage
Fast-growing tech sectors such as mobile communications, software, green IT,
e-commerce and the Internet
Source: BerlinValley
GLOSSARY OF GERMAN VC FUNDS
Page 3 of 4
*Includes investments outside of Germany

30. 30
Investor
Funded
year
Min
check
size (€)
Max
check
size (€)
Investments
2017/2018*
Region Stage Sectors
2016 50K 200K 8 Europe Pre-Seed to Seed B2B/Enterprise Software with strong technology reference
2007 1M 10M 8 World Series A to Later Stage Direct-to-consumer/transactions-oriented business models, enabling technologies
2015 100K 500K 7 Germany Pre-Seed to Seed B2B, Marketplaces, SaaS, Deep-Tech, Digital Services
2008 500K 1M 7 DACH Seed Education Technology, Health Digital Services, Financial Services
2010 250K 2.5M 7 Europe Seed to Later Stage Digital Health, Healthtech, Medical Devices, Life-Science-Platform-Technologies
2011 500K 3M 7 DACH Seed to Series B
B2B Startups, Enterprise Software, Industrial Technologies and mobility, software
and hardware
2018 25K 100K 6 Europe Pre-Seed to Seed Mobility, Media, Travel, Lifestyle, Fintech
2015 250K 1M 6 World Pre-Seed to Seed Proptech, SaaS, Marketplaces, Insurtech, Fintech, Deeptech
2014 500K 5M 6 DACH Pre-Seed to Series A Fintech, Regtech, Insurtech, Legaltech
2009 5M 50M 6 World Series A to Later Stage
Travel, Health, Home & Living, Beauty & Accessories, Tech, E-Commerce, Retail and
Lead Generation
2012 50K 500K 6 DACH Seed to Series A Technology, Media, Industrials, Life Sciences, Education
2016 500K 3M 5 DACH Pre-Seed to Series B Internet, Fintech/Insurtech, Legaltech, Comparison, Marketplaces
2016 25K 750K 4 World Seed to Series A Consumer Internet, SaaS, B2B Solutions, Digital SMB’s
2014 100K 1.5M 3 Europe Pre-Seed to Series A E-Commerce
Source: BerlinValley
GLOSSARY OF GERMAN VC FUNDS
Page 4 of 4
*Includes investments outside of Germany

31. 31
GLOBAL PRESENCE AND PORTFOLIO
INTRODUCTION TO WHITE STAR CAPITAL
White Star Capital
We invest in ambitious entrepreneurs on both sides of the Atlantic. Between us, we have founded,
scaled and sold many successful technology businesses. We leverage our collective experience, expertise
and global network to help our startups succeed.
www.whitestarvc.com