THROUGH INVESTING IN CUTTING-EDGE SPACE TECHNOLOGIES, WE INVEST IN THE FUTURE OF SOCIETY.

The space industry is undergoing a revolution, rapidly accelerating to new, previously unseen altitudes.
WHO WE ARE
1

Herius Capital is one of the first Space Tech specialized venture capital firms in Europe.

Our diverse and inclusive workforce comprises ofseasoned investors, space experts and engineers and a unique Advisory Board. We are proficient in the VC space market.
2

We are investing exclusively in early stage Space Tech companies globally:

with a focus on Europe and with exclusive access to the CEE and SEE markets.
3

We are activist investors:

We are supporting our portfolio companies in their technology, business structuring and deal-making. We are building and strengthening small ecosystems within the NewSpace market.
Our mission
  • 01

    Unlocking humanity’s reach to space and the democratization of space technology
  • 02

    Strengthening of the new space industry
  • 03

    Leveraging early-stage growth potential of new space start-ups

How we plan to achieve them

  • State-of-the-art pipeline based on our market research, a unique network in the space industry and our knowledge of the NewSpace market;
  • Activist approach: supporting portfolio companies in business structuring and technology issues, matching and connecting capabilities in portfolio companies and building and joining small ecosystems;

Dr. István Sárhegyi

Managing Partner
Istvan is an astropreneur, space angel and lawyer, founder of Herius Capital with an intention to boost the ecosystem of the space industry in the CEE region. He set up a JV to launch and operate Hungary’s first geostationary satellite for commercial, governmental, and scientific research. He is the chairman and majority shareholder of REMRED Ltd., one of the leading space technology companies in Hungary, focusing on the manufacturing and testing of space equipment.

Dr. Kornél Szabó

Partner
  • Space and technology enthusiast, a Heinlen Foundation and ESA scholarship holder.
  • Before Herius Capital was founded, Kornél worked for 20 years in M&A, PE and VC transactions in top-tier law firms in Budapest and Brussels (White&Case, Allen&Overy).
  • Since 2017, Kornel is also a member of a boutique space consultancy firm, advising space tech companies and institutions.

Andrea Novák

Partner, CFO/COO
  • Andrea has more than 14 years of finance and private equity experience.
  • Before Herius, Andrea served as the Head of Fund Administration at Oriens Investment Management, a middle-market private equity firm investing in the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia with €150 M of AUM.
  • Andrea also worked at BlackRock, the world’s leading asset manager.
  • She started her career at the Budapest Stock Exchange where she spent 7 years and held the Deputy Financial Director position.

Sebastian Misurák

Investment Manager
  • Sebastian is an innovation enthusiast and financial expert with more than 5 years of experience in the venture capital industry. Sebastian wrote his MSc thesis on Silicon Valley’s VC landscape and has wide-ranging working experience along the specific financial and investing value chains.
  • Before joining Herius, Sebastian earned an MSc degree in Knowledge-based Entrepreneurship from the University of Gothenburg and worked as a business developer in the energy industry.

Kaja Hopej

Associate
Kaja is a space lawyer and an advisor on the Polish space sector. Kaja is associated with the Polish Space Law Task Force operating at Kozminski University. Before joining Herius she worked at Greenberg Traurig Poland, focusing on capital markets. Kaja is a Law graduate at the Cracow University of Economics and she was studying international business management at EDHEC Business School in France. Kaja holds a certificate of completion of the Space Law and Policy Course organised by ECSL in cooperation with the European Space Agency.

Marcell Sitányi

Partner, Chief Investment Officer
  • Marcell has more than 10 years of finance and venture capital experience.
  • Before Herius, Marcell served as Senior Investment Manager at Hiventures, a leading Hungarian VC with $520 million of AUM. At HiVentures, he led 12 investments in various sectors, deploying nearly $23 million and was a board member of 9 companies.
  • Marcell started his career at the Budapest Stock Exchange and also worked in London as a financial analyst.

Árisz Kecskés

Investment Manager
After spending multiple years in Hungary’s tourism governance agency as a sectoral strategist contributing to the Hungarian Tourism Development Strategy and his subsequent role as a strategic marketing advisor, Árisz joined the team tasked with developing the Hungarian Space Development Strategy as a workstream leader, responsible for strategically positioning Hungarian space companies to better integrate into the international value chain. Since then, he consulted on and managed numerous domestic and international space-specific projects, working closely with the European Space Agency. Árisz assumed the role of Portfolio Manager at Herius Capital.

Noémi Szabó

Investment Manager
  • Noémi has more than 6 years of finance experience including 4 years in venture capital.
  • Before Herius, Noémi served as Senior Investment Manager at Hiventures, a leading Hungarian VC with $520 million of AUM. At HiVentures, she led investments in various sectors, and was a board member of 9 companies.
  • Noémi is passionate about innovation, problem-solving, and networking.

Dr. hab. Katarzyna Malinowska

Board member
Professor of Kozminski University, attorney at law, and an expert in risk management and insurance, including space insurance. Author of at least several dozen publications on the above. Her main book concerns Space insurance. International legal aspects’ (Kluwer Law International, 2017). A frequent speaker at Polish and international academic and industry conferences. Head of the Centre for Space Studies at Kozminski University and leader of the postgraduate studies ‘Entrepreneurship in the space industry. Expert at the Committee of the Enterprise Risk Management at the International Astronautical Federation. Head of Working Group on Polish Space Law at Kozminski University, advising Ministry of Development and Polish Space Agency in the works on the Polish law on space activity. Member of the International Institute of Space Law.

Pedro Duque

Board member
Aerospace Engineer at the Madrid Polytechnic University UPM. Pedro started his career at GMV, where he acquired expertise in Orbital Computations and led the corresponding team at ESOC, the Operations Centre of ESA. As a selected Astronaut, he underwent multiple training courses, acquiring experience in Russia, the USA, Japan, and Canada in addition to Europe in 1992. He is a veteran of two space flights; Discovery STS-95 and Soyuz TMA-3. He became the CEO of Deimos Imaging, an Earth Observation company with its satellites, a position he held until 2011. He was a board member of AENA (the largest airport operator in the world) for almost three years. The Board oversaw the listing of the Company on the stock exchange after being fully state-owned. He served in the Government of Spain as Minister for Research and Innovation for 3 years until very recently.

Jan Wörner

Board member
ESA Director General from 2015 until 2021. He studied civil engineering at the Technical University (TU) Berlin and TU Darmstadt. In 1994, he founded his own civil engineering office, Woerner Nordhues engineering, being active in many fields including safety, earthquake, and glass engineering. He has received honorary doctorates from multiple universities worldwide, from New York to Paris. He was a member of the administrative boards of École Centrale Paris, École Centrale de Lyon, TU Berlin, the Instituto Superior Técnico, University of Lisbon, the Arts and Music University in Frankfurt and has been a member of several supervisory boards including Carl Schenck AG, Röhm GmbH, TÜV Rheinland AG and Bilfinger SE. From 2007 to 2015, he was Chairman of the Executive Board of the German Aerospace Center (DLR). Before joining ESA as Director-General, he was head of the German delegation to ESA. Currently, he is the president of acatech, the German Academy of Science and Engineering.
Strategic collaborations
Herius Capital can demonstrate long-term collaborations with leading organisations and agencies within the industry, and established extensive relationships within the global venture community and with academies of scientific research and technology.
European Space Agency
EUSPA

PITCH DECKS
AND GENERAL ENGAGEMENT

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Started with the Wright brothers,
we go beyond together.

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1022 Budapest, Hungary


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