Klaus Hommels is a venture capitalist based in Zurich, Switzerland. He focuses on early and growth-stage investments and has founded his own venture capital fund by the name of Lakestar, through which he has been investing mainly in Internet businesses. He has been involved in successful Internet investments such as Skype, Facebook and Xing.
Early career
Hommels studied at the University of Fribourg, Switzerland, where he became a Master of Science in Business Administration and also studied a Ph.D. in Finance. After graduating, he worked as a Managing Director in business development, content and advertising for AOL. He started the role in 1995 and was based in Germany. He left the position after four years in 1999 to join Apax Partners. Hommels worked as a Director for the private equity firm in Munich. At the height of the dotcom bubble burst, he began to invest as a private investor in technology startups. During this period, he invested in a number of notable startups at an early stage. This included the likes of Facebook. In 2006, after six years as a private investor, Hommels joined Benchmark Capital, now Balderton Capital, as a Venture Partner in London. After a year with Benchmark, he founded Hommels Holding, resuming his private investing in technology and Internet-based businesses. In 2009, it was announced that Hommels had made an investment in the startup, Spotify. As part of the announcement, he also became a member of its board. He was an early-stage investor in the company, with the valuation of around £20-£30 million.
Lakestar
Following this early success, Hommels set up his own venture capital firm, now known as Lakestar. Since 2012 Lakestar has built a reputation as one the bestventure capital firms in Europe for its high return on investment. The venture capital's first seed fund recorded a 70% internal rate of return from its investments. The firm has capitalized on this success and has continued to raise funds to invest predominantly in European tech start-ups. In 2013, Lakestar announced the launch of its first institutional fund, Lakestar I, with a total commitment of €150 million. Lakestar I went onto make investments in various European-based start-ups. This included participating in a $27 million funding round for Omio, formerly GoEuro. Hommels has been a vocal supporter of the European start-up and technology sectors. In a 2017 discussion with CNBC, he argued start-ups in Europe need supportive policy and regulation in order to be competitive on a global scale. He cited the tech industry in China as an example, noting the Made in China 2025 plan which supports local high tech industries in the country. He also spoke about the gap between US and European tech companies and what could be done to bridge it, referring to the problem as a "trade deficit." He also had a similar interview with BusinessInsider, where he spoke about the strength of European-based startups. In 2019, Hommels was vocal about the lack of investment in startups throughout Germany, stating that he believed the culture needed to shift to operate more like the United States. The success of Lakestar led to its founder being recognized by Forbes for his track record, when the publication listed Hommels in the third position on its Midas Touch List in 2018. Further analysis of the list demonstrated London's importance on venture capital, with 17 of the 25 from the Midas list based in London. Later that year, it was announced that the latest Lakestar fund would total $700 million.
Internet Economy Foundation
Hommels is a board member of the Internet Economy Foundation. It was created alongside Ralph Dommermuth and Robert Gentz in 2016 at the Allianz Forum. The think tank aims to study and consult on the European Internet industry. IE.F has a number of goals, including creating better financing conditions for start-ups and the faster development of digital infrastructure across Europe. It aims to be impartial, providing information on the latest economic developments and technologies.
Investments
Hommels has invested in a number of major startups and also had many notable exits. Prior to Lakestar, Hommels was an early investor in a number of tech startups. One of his first major investments was in the German-social media startup, Xing. According to a BusinessInsider report, it was the first social media company to IPO globally. In 2007, Hommels exited his position with QXL.com, which was sold for £946 million. He also invested in Spotify in 2009. He also invested in Skype and exited the position when it was acquired by Microsoft in May 2011 for $8.5 billion.
Honors
Klaus Hommels was elected as Europe’s most successful Entrepreneurial Private Investor in 2006 by the leading European business schoolsIESE, INSEAD, and the University of St. Gallen. In 2017, Forbes recognised Hommels on its first-ever Midas Touch list, where he was listed in third position. In 2019, Forbes recognised Hommels as 46th on the Global Midas list and 5th on the Midas List Europe.
