Indico Capital Partners Research
Investment Thesis
Indico Capital Partners is a Lisbon-based independent venture capital firm founded in 2018 — the first sizable independent VC firm in Portugal. Indico's core thesis is that the Portuguese, Spanish, and Italian ecosystems possess incredibly strong engineering talent capable of generating innovative businesses and sustainable solutions at global scale. Due to limited local markets, Southern European entrepreneurs are forced to adopt an international mindset from day one. Indico's mission is to provide this exceptional talent pool with the capital and knowledge to assist in global expansion.
The firm's complementary partners group and dedicated team have been behind almost the entirety of successful tech stories and unicorns in Portugal over the last decade, both as investors and entrepreneurs. Since becoming the first sizable independent VC firm in Portugal in 2018, they have successfully propelled Iberian startups into international markets. In 2022, Indico expanded from tech into the ocean/blue economy with the launch of a dedicated ocean fund — a theme they are personally passionate about and professionally experienced in.
Sector Focus
Indico invests across two primary pillars:
Technology
- Enterprise SaaS and vertical software
- Artificial Intelligence and deep tech applications
- Space tech and satellite IoT
- Fintech and embedded finance
- Healthtech and digital health
- Consumer platforms and marketplaces
- Cybersecurity
Sustainable Ocean (Blue Economy)
- Ocean renewable energy (floating offshore wind)
- Marine biotechnology (seaweed, microalgae)
- Ocean IoT and monitoring systems
- Sustainable aquaculture and fisheries
- Maritime operations and green shipping
- Coastal tourism and services
- Waste and circular economy
Stage Focus
Indico invests from Pre-Seed through Series B, with selective participation in Series C and beyond for top-performing portfolio companies:
- Pre-Seed: €250k–€500k for early teams with proven potential
- Seed: €500k–€2M for companies with initial product and early traction
- Series A: €2M–€10M for companies demonstrating product-market fit
- Selective Series B and C follow-ons for top portfolio performers
Indico VC Fund III (launched November 2025) specifically targets Seed to Series B investments.
Check Size
Typical investment range: €250,000 to €10,000,000 per company
- Tech funds: €500k to €10M per company (core range)
- Ocean-related sustainable SMEs: €100k to €5M per company
- Pre-seed checks start at €250k
Lead Tendency
Indico mostly leads and co-leads the rounds in which it participates. The firm is described as extremely hands-on with its portfolio companies, actively working with them on talent acquisition, product roadmap, sales and marketing strategies, M&A projects, and strategic financing for subsequent investment rounds.
Recent Activity
Indico is actively deploying capital from Indico VC Fund III, its sixth investment vehicle with a €125M target, launched in November 2025 with a €30M anchor commitment from the European Investment Fund (EIF). This deployment follows the successful closure of five earlier funds totaling over €240M in assets under management.
Notable recent investments:
- January 2026: Participated in Preply Series D (global language learning platform, US-based)
- December 2025: Invested in PandaDoc Series C (document automation, $5.9M check)
- 2025: Invested in Dealroom (global VC/startup data intelligence platform)
- 2024: Multiple investments including FRVR (game platform), Indie Campers (campervan rental), Hercules AI (multi-agent AI enterprise), Gazelle Wind Power (offshore wind), Cargo.one (freight logistics tech), Arborea (microalgae proteins)
Portfolio Highlights
Indico has supported 56 companies since 2019, which together have raised over €2.5 billion from global investors. Four portfolio companies have achieved unicorn status:
Unicorns and Major Portfolio Companies
- Remote.com — global HR platform for remote teams (co-founded by Marcelo Lebre, an Indico portfolio company, now a multi-billion dollar unicorn)
- Sword Health — digital musculoskeletal health platform (major US health unicorn)
- Anchorage Digital — crypto-native institutional digital asset custodian (major US unicorn)
- Talkdesk — co-founded by GP Cristina Fonseca; global cloud contact center leader (unicorn)
Notable Acquisitions and Exits
- Rows: acquired by / joined Superhuman (collaborative spreadsheet tool)
- Cargofive: acquired by Cargo.one (digital freight marketplace)
- Zenklub: acquired by Conexa (2023, Brazilian mental health platform)
Active Portfolio Highlights
- Preply — global language learning platform (Series D, US-listed)
- Dealroom — leading global VC and startup data intelligence platform
- FRVR — game creation and distribution platform (2024)
- Indie Campers — global leader in campervan/RV rental market (2024)
- Bizay — marketing platform for SMEs, raised $55M
- FOSSA Systems — global IoT solution via pico-satellite constellations, raised €9.25M
- Infraspeak — Intelligent CMMS software, enterprise maintenance management (2019)
- Hercules AI — multi-agent AI enterprise workflows (2024)
Pre-Indico Investments (Stephan & Ricardo at Caixa Capital)
- Farfetch — global luxury fashion platform (IPO exit)
- Fever — curated experiences/events platform
Team
Indico's 14-person team brings deep investment, entrepreneurial, and operational expertise:
- Stephan de Moraes, Managing General Partner — 20+ years of investment and CEO experience; former Executive Board Member at Caixa Capital; Harvard Business School MBA. Has been behind almost all major Portuguese tech success stories.
- Ricardo Torgal, General Partner and CFO — 20+ years of investment experience at Caixa Capital; previously at InterRisco (PE of BPI Group). Co-invested alongside Stephan in landmark Portuguese tech companies.
- Cristina Fonseca, General Partner — Co-Founder of Talkdesk (unicorn) and Cleverly; Galp Board Member; Forbes 30 Under 30 in Enterprise Technology. Brings rare operator-investor perspective.
- Rui Rodrigues, Partner — 10+ years of investment and M&A experience; VC at Caixa Capital; M&A at PwC Spain. Leads investment analysis and deal structuring.
- Sofia Egidio, Partner and General Counsel — 20+ years of legal experience; previously at Fidelidade. Manages legal, compliance, and governance.
- André Almeida Santos, Partner — 20+ years of investment experience; Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School; previously African Development Bank Principal Country Economist. Brings international capital markets expertise.
- Rui Jeronimo, Principal — 14+ years of investment experience at Caixa Capital.
- João Pedro Roque, Principal — 16+ years of investment experience; PE & VC at Status Capital; Investment Banking at ING Bank; MIT MBA; MSc in Electrical and Computer Engineering.
- Tomás Marchão Marques, Investment Analyst — Previously at 415 Capital; TU Munich MSc.
Decision Process
Indico operates as a multi-partner investment firm. Decisions are made collectively by the partnership, with Stephan de Moraes as Managing General Partner providing leadership. The firm's complementary partner group includes both former investors and operators, enabling both financial and commercial perspectives on every deal.
Geographic Focus
Primary: Portugal, Spain, Italy Secondary: Companies from these countries currently operating in the US, UK, or other global markets (diaspora plays)
Indico targets companies with Southern European DNA that have global ambitions and the capacity to scale internationally. They actively invest in companies based outside Portugal as long as there is a strong Portuguese, Spanish, or Italian connection.
Founder Preferences
Indico looks for:
- Highly ambitious teams with exceptional execution ability
- International mindset from day one
- Technical founders with deep domain expertise
- Willingness to build global category winners in large addressable markets
- Openness to work closely and transparently with investors
- Creativity and realism combined with ambitious targets
For sustainability/ocean investments, they additionally consider innovative industrial SMEs with significant global expansion potential, including companies in hardware, biotech, and industrial innovation not typically backed by traditional tech VCs.