On March 1, Dominique Mégret, founder and head of Swisscom Ventures, will become the new CEO of Ecorobotix. The management will therefore pass into the expert hands of three well-known faces: Stefan Kuentz, Alexander Schläpfer and Pär Lange will share the helm in the role of Managing Partner after having contributed to the birth of the Ventures sector together with Dominique. The trio have collaborated closely for years and, despite boasting different experiences and skills, they share an excellent network of acquaintances and the desire to guide Swisscom Ventures towards a successful future.
Il settore Swisscom Ventures was founded by Dominique Mégret in 2007. It has since grown to become a major player in the Swiss start-up scene and the country’s largest venture capital investor. Swisscom Ventures guarantees companies multi-year support along their journey, from the first steps to the growth phase, to help them achieve long-lasting and sustainable success.
Abroad, Swisscom Ventures focuses its activity on new technologies that could help the Swiss economy and businesses grow. In Switzerland, Swisscom Ventures supports promising start-ups to further stimulate the country’s digitalisation and strengthen its innovation capacity. This is how companies like Sophia Genetics, Ecorobotix or Yokoy were born and grew.
Isa Müller-Wegner, Head of Group Strategy & Business Development at Swisscom since June 2023, welcomes the change at the top of Swisscom Ventures for two reasons: «It is fantastic that Dominique Mégret will become the new CEO of Ecorobotix, a company in which Swisscom Ventures has invested in recent years. At the same time, I am happy with the continuity provided by Alexander, Pär and Stefan within the team. Strong partnerships, trust and a good network of knowledge in the start-up ecosystem are in fact among the main factors of Ventures’ success. The trio has worked side by side for many years, can count on a large network of acquaintances and has accompanied companies such as ANYbotics, Kandou and Scandit. Each of them knows the challenges, opportunities, trends and businesses emerging in Switzerland and abroad in the wake of digitalisation and new technologies.”
Portrait of Swisscom Ventures
Swisscom Ventures advises Swisscom investment funds and institutional investors with a volume of USD 650 million. These funds invest in minority stakes in Swiss and international start-ups. Since 2007, Swisscom Ventures has participated in 80 young companies. Of these holdings, almost 40 were resold at a profit after an average period of 6 years. The investment team works closely with colleagues in various Swisscom operating divisions, drawing on the company’s unrivaled expertise in digital transformation.
Swisscom Ventures is committed to continuity
Swisscom Ventures relies on a team with different career paths, professional experiences and cultural backgrounds, committing itself to offering a complex portfolio that is also reflected in the different know-how of the new top management.
Alexander SchläpferMSc in Finance
Before joining Swisscom Ventures in June 2016, Alexander was a co-founder and partner at Aster Capital in Paris, the corporate venture platform of Schneider Electric, Alstom and Solvay, where he was responsible for investments in renewable energy, IoT and industrial IT. Before entering the world of VC he directed the Strategy, M & A, Sales and Marketing sectors in Alstom’s Power Service operating division. He previously held various operational management positions for ABB in the Middle East. Furthermore, he was co-founder and president of a robotics start-up at the Federal Institute of Technology Zurich.
His specializations: robotics, industry 4.0, edtech, fintech.
Pär Lange, MSc in Physics, MBA INSEAD
Before helping to found Swisscom Ventures in 2007, Pär was co-founder and managing director of a Stockholm consultancy that focuses on investing in ICT companies in the early stages of their life cycle. He had previously co-founded a mobile network operator that managed to obtain a 3G license in Sweden. His professional career began in the Scandinavian country with the development of solutions for microwave and radio frequency transmission, after which he worked in sales and marketing for Ericsson in Japan.
His specializations: communication, semiconductor and sensor technologies.
Stefan KuentzMSc in Computer Science
Stefan has been with Swisscom since 2003 and joined Swisscom Ventures in 2011, where he mainly focused on international investments dedicated to cloud, SaaS and cybersecurity. At Swisscom, Stefan held various management positions including leading the US outpost in Silicon Valley and establishing new units dedicated to B2B business solutions. Before joining Swisscom, Stefan worked for many years for IBM where, in the role of Associate Partner, he also headed the IT strategic consultancy sector.
His specializations: IT, cloud, enterprise software, cybersecurity, US ecosystem.