At a Glance
SET Ventures was founded in 2007 as one of Europe's pioneering climate tech venture capital firms, well before the current wave of climate investing became mainstream. Based in Amsterdam, the firm has built deep expertise in energy transition technologies, focusing on companies that develop both software and hardware solutions for sustainable energy systems, smart mobility, and industrial efficiency. SET Ventures typically invests in B2B companies with strong technical teams and defensible technology platforms that can scale across European markets. The firm's investment approach emphasizes technical due diligence and operational support, drawing on their team's engineering and energy sector backgrounds. They have been particularly active in the Netherlands' growing cleantech ecosystem while also investing across broader European markets. SET Ventures has maintained a consistent focus on companies addressing energy efficiency, grid optimization, and industrial decarbonization, areas that have become increasingly attractive to both investors and strategic acquirers as the energy transition accelerates.
“Invests in European technology companies accelerating the energy transition through innovative software and smart infrastructure solutions.”
SET Ventures is led by three managing partners. René Savelsberg and Wouter Jonk co-founded the firm in 2007 and each bring more than 25 years in technology investing, deeptech and corporate venturing, with Jonk's background spanning energy and cleantech venture capital, business creation and M&A. Anton Arts became managing partner in 2018 and has more than 20 investments behind him, with exit transactions valued above 1 billion euros.
The bench has been deepened with operators rather than financiers. Leonie Baneke joined as associate partner in July 2026 from Eneco eMobility, where she was chief executive, bringing utility-side commercial experience to a portfolio that sells largely to grid operators, utilities and industrial energy buyers. The firm runs from Keizersgracht in Amsterdam and a second office on Rodingsmarkt in Hamburg, giving it coverage of the two largest European power markets.
SET Ventures has raised four funds since René Savelsberg and Wouter Jonk founded the firm in Amsterdam in 2007, scaling each vintage as European energy-transition capital deepened. SET Fund II held a first close at 60 million euros in 2015 and a final close in 2017 on an undisclosed total. SET Fund III closed at its 100 million euro hard cap in the first quarter of 2019, well above a 75 million euro target, with Triodos and Korys among the disclosed limited partners.
SET Fund IV, announced in September 2023, closed at 200 million euros, the largest vehicle in the firm's history and double the size of Fund III. Structured as an SFDR Article 9 fund, it drew the European Investment Fund, Triodos Energy Transition Europe Fund, insurer a.s.r., climate platform Carbon Equity and several European grid operators, with Dutch state investor Invest-NL committing 10 million euros. The fund is earmarked for 20 to 25 European energy-transition companies. The firm reports more than 10 exits across the four vintages, including Green Eagle Solutions in September 2026.
SET Ventures primarily invests at the Seed, Series A, Series B stages. This means they focus on companies that are building their initial product and finding product-market fit.
SET Ventures is headquartered in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Many of their portfolio companies are also based in this region, though they invest across geographies.
SET Ventures focuses on investments in Climate, Deeptech, SaaS, AI, Enterprise. Their portfolio reflects deep expertise and networks within these sectors.
SET Ventures's typical investment check size ranges from $1M to $10M. Actual amounts may vary based on the stage, sector, and specific opportunity.
SET Ventures manages approximately $300M in assets under management (AUM) across their funds.
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