Stefan Glaenzer

Who they are

Stefan Glaenzer is a co-founder of Passion Capital — previously co-founded Last.fm (acquired) and ricardo.de (acquired), and built the White Bear Yard co-working space that seeded London's East End startup scene.

Person

Stefan Glaenzer has been building and backing European internet companies since the late 1990s — first as a founder, then as an investor. He co-founded ricardo.de, a German online auction and e-commerce platform that was acquired, and Last.fm, the music streaming and social network that was also acquired. He also co-founded myblog.de, a German blogging platform, and companions.de, an early online platform. Before moving into venture, he built White Bear Yard, a co-working space in London's East End that became the physical precursor to Passion Capital, which he co-founded with Eileen Burbidge and Robert Dighero in 2011 when the fund launched with $60 million. He also founded Rebate Networks (Berlin-based, where he served as executive chair) and LIFT99, a startup skill-sharing platform, alongside Triple A, his most recent venture. TechCrunch Europe named him the best angel investor in Europe. He speaks regularly at NOAH, NEXT, DLD, and the EU-Startups Summit, and appeared on 20VC discussing seed-stage investing — his public voice centres on European entrepreneurship, seed dynamics, and co-working as infrastructure for founders.

Company

Passion Capital closed its fourth seed fund, Passion IV, at €46 million ($55 million) in April 2026, fully backed by private investors and structured alongside two SPVs — the freshest signal that the firm is actively deploying into a new cycle targeting AI, FinTech, and Enterprise Risk startups across Europe. The close came off the back of a strong 2025: the firm distributed €72 million ($85 million) to LPs — more than any previous fund — driven by multiple exits including Ravelin, Tillo, and Xelix, and the landmark €1.1 billion acquisition of GoCardless by Dutch payments firm Mollie in December 2025. Portfolio companies including Attio, PolyAI, Lassie, and Marshmallow raised significant growth rounds through 2025, with Lassie closing a $75 million Series C in February 2026. Since founding in 2011, Passion Capital has backed 107 companies, produced 3 unicorns and 21 acquisitions, and reportedly delivered a net IRR of 23% and 2.5x DPI.

Market

Passion Capital competes in the European early-stage VC market against firms including Seedcamp, LocalGlobe, Balderton Capital, Index Ventures, and Atomico — all of whom overlap on stage and sector, though Passion stays tighter on seed and pre-seed. The firm's focus on AI, FinTech, and RiskTech puts it squarely in Europe's most active deal categories, where regulatory tailwinds (EU AI Act, SFDR) are increasingly shaping which funds LPs favour. The broader European tech ecosystem is seeing increased deal volume in regulated financial markets, a dynamic that suits a specialist seed fund with a track record in fintech names like Monzo, Tide, and GoCardless.

Network

Glaenzer co-founded Passion Capital alongside Eileen Burbidge and Robert Dighero, who remain central to the firm's identity; current managing partners include Andrew Jenkins, Will Orde, Sarah Stafford, and Greg Bennett. He has also served on the advisory board of Zagreb's ZIP incubator, mentoring early-stage companies including BackWay, Fieldpod, and Publiconn.

Eileen Burbidge· Co-founding Partner, Passion Capital
Robert Dighero· Co-founding Partner, Passion Capital
Andrew Jenkins· Partner, Passion Capital
Will Orde· Partner, Passion Capital
Sarah Stafford· Partner, Passion Capital
Greg Bennett· Partner, Passion Capital

How they likely show up

Serial founder across ricardo.de, Last.fm, myblog.de, companions.de, Rebate Networks, White Bear Yard, LIFT99, and Triple A → wired to start things, not just back them; likely brings a builder's impatience to board conversations.
Built White Bear Yard as physical infrastructure before launching Passion Capital → thinks in ecosystems and preconditions, not just capital deployment.
Role type flagged as 'hybrid' (founder + investor across career) → probably uncomfortable with pure observer roles; will want to engage on product and go-to-market, not just governance.
Regular speaker at NOAH, NEXT, DLD, EU-Startups Summit, and 20VC → comfortable being visible and on record; responds well to direct, substantive conversation rather than soft-ball pitches.
TechCrunch named him best angel investor in Europe before Passion Capital launched → has a long pre-institutional investing track record, meaning he evaluates founders the way angels do — on instinct and pattern recognition, not just metrics.
Possibly — his 2018 TechCrunch piece titled 'The End of My VC Career' suggests he has publicly reflected on the tension between operating and investing, which may inform how he frames his current work at Triple A.

Conversation tips

→ Reference the GoCardless exit specifically — a €1.1 billion outcome for a seed-stage bet is a defining proof point for the Passion Capital thesis and he'll have a strong perspective on what made it work.
→ Ask about Passion IV's SPV structure — using two SPVs alongside the main fund is a specific tactical choice worth probing; it signals flexibility on how they deploy, not just where.
→ Don't pitch him on a company without knowing your seed metrics cold — he's been doing this since the late 1990s and will spot vague traction claims immediately.
→ If you want to open him up, ask about White Bear Yard — building the physical space before the fund is an unusual sequencing choice and it's clearly a point of founding mythology for him.
→ Possibly — given his 2018 public reflection on leaving VC and his subsequent founding of Triple A, he may be more interested in talking about his current operator work than Passion Capital's portfolio; read the room early.

Toolbox

Openers

Open on the GoCardless exit — Passion Capital seeded GoCardless at the very beginning, and watching it acquired by Mollie for €1.1 billion in December 2025 is the kind of outcome that validates a 15-year fund strategy; he'll have a strong and specific view on the journey.
Reference the Passion IV close in April 2026 — €46 million raised fully from private investors, structured with two SPVs, targeting AI and FinTech: ask what the SPV structure unlocks that a standard fund vehicle doesn't.
Bring up White Bear Yard — he built the co-working space before co-founding Passion Capital, a deliberate sequencing that shaped London's East End startup scene; it's a concrete, named thing he built that most people overlook.

Discovery questions

You seeded GoCardless at the very start — what did you see in the team or thesis in those early days that the broader market was missing?
Passion IV is structured with two SPVs alongside the main fund — what does that flexibility let you do that a single vehicle wouldn't?
You've founded companies and run a seed fund — now you're building Triple A: what's the problem you're trying to solve with it, and how does it differ from what Passion Capital does?

Avoid

Don't treat him as a pure capital allocator — he's a serial founder who built companies before he ever ran a fund, and flattening him to 'VC partner' will read as surface-level preparation.

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