Begin Capital

Begin Capital is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage technology companies. They focus on Seed and Series A rounds, with ticket sizes ranging from $500k to $7M. While they have a strong affinity for the European market, they are open to global opportunities. The firm's investment strategy for its first season is broad, seeking "blockbusters across all industries and genres," but their second season is specifically dedicated to DeepTech, Artificial Intelligence, and SaaS.

Begin Capital was established in 2019 by partners Alex Menn and Ruslan Sarkisyan. Alex Menn brought over 15 years of experience in private equity and venture capital, having participated in more than 50 transactions totaling over $3.5 billion. Ruslan Sarkisyan, prior to co-founding Begin Capital, gained experience as a startup founder, corporate and strategy consultant, and spent five years with Runa Capital. The firm was founded with a mission to generate strong returns for investors while actively supporting visionary entrepreneurs in building robust and fast-growing companies.

Begin Capital's portfolio includes a diverse range of companies. Notable investments include Zadaa, a C2C apparel resale marketplace where Begin Capital was a lead investor with a €1.5M cheque, and Samokat, a dark store delivery service from which the firm has exited. Other portfolio companies span various sectors, such as EBAC Online (an online university), Motley (a UK jewelry brand), Naduvi (a European outlet furniture marketplace), Native Teams (a global platform for work payments), Simplyblock (software-defined storage), Fundraise Up (SaaS for charities), Thrust carbon (sustainability intelligence), Zencoder (AI coding agent), Runware (AI-generation API), and Tomorrow Things (AI-driven automation for manufacturers).

The Begin Capital team comprises experienced professionals like Alex Menn, known for his expertise in deal structuring, finance, strategy, and sales, with a long-term planning horizon. Ruslan Sarkisyan focuses on product-driven companies and shares his experience in building sales teams and raising significant investment rounds. Joël Van Dijk contributes a diverse perspective from his experience as a co-founder, a Seed-Series A VC fund professional, and investment banking. Saagar Bhavsar, with a background in InsurTech, FinTech, and leading over 15 deals, focuses on large and challenging technical issues, particularly in reshaping human-technology interaction. The team emphasizes being partners, entrepreneurs, advisors, and team members, actively working alongside founders.