Aspire11 has deployed the first €100 million from its €515 million fund, marking the initial investment phase of the platform. The first portfolio includes companies such as Revolut, ElevenLabs, Databricks, Vinted, VAST Data and Baseten.
The deployment marks another step in Europe's broader effort to bring more long-term institutional capital into innovation. Recent examples include Czech investment firm Orbit Capital's €107 million Growth Debt Fund II, highlighting a growing appetite for investment vehicles designed to support technology companies beyond traditional venture capital.
Connecting innovation with the pools of long-term capital
When it launched in late 2025, Aspire11 set out to connect pension capital with high-growth companies. Founded by Czech investor Pavel Mucha, the platform was created to demonstrate how institutional retirement savings can play a more active role in financing innovation while continuing to generate stable, long-term returns for pension savers.
"Europe has no shortage of innovation, entrepreneurial talent or ambitious founders. The challenge is connecting that innovation with the pools of long-term capital that can help it scale. Aspire11 was created to help bridge that gap and demonstrate how pension capital can play a much greater role in backing the companies shaping the future economy,"
— said Pavel Mucha, founder of Aspire11.
The platform was launched in September 2025, with €500 million fully committed by Czech pension company Rentea and drew inspiration from Canada's Maple Model — an investment approach that has enabled some of the world's largest pension funds to become major investors in private markets.
Dual investment strategy
Rather than operating as a traditional venture capital fund, Aspire11 introduced a dual strategy.
Its Tribes platform invests in leading venture capital funds, while Eternals provides long-term capital directly to mature private technology companies. The strategy is built on the idea that many of today's most valuable companies remain private for much longer than in previous decades, meaning a significant share of value creation now happens before they ever reach the public markets.
Tülin Tokatli, co-founder and Managing Partner of Tribes, says their goal is to identify exceptional companies as early as possible and remain a long-term partner as they scale. "Tribes gives us exposure to the managers discovering tomorrow’s category leaders, while Eternals allows us to back the most compelling businesses as they mature into global companies.”
As Zaya Kadyrova, co-founder and Managing Partner of Eternals, further explains:
"While many of the world's most valuable technology companies now create the majority of their value while still private, much of Europe's pension capital remains significantly underrepresented in venture and growth investing.
Our goal is to help long-term institutional capital access exceptional businesses while remaining invested through their most important growth phases. Being geography agnostic, we focus on backing global leaders regardless of where they are, whether in Europe or the US."
Aspire11's latest move is part of a much broader shift in how Europe is thinking about pension capital — not just as a source of retirement income, but as a driver of innovation and long-term economic growth.
The pension capital opportunity
Europe manages more than €3 trillion in pension assets, creating one of the world's largest pools of long-term capital. Unfortunately, only around 0.12% of it is currently allocated to venture and growth investments across the continent. In comparison, US public pension funds allocate 29.7% to alternatives.
Some European countries, such as the Netherlands (3.9%) and Germany (2.3%), already demonstrate how institutional capital can play a larger role in supporting innovation. According to the Venture & Growth Capital in Europe – Mapping Pension Funds' Attitudes report, European pension funds are increasingly exploring indirect exposure to venture capital through fund-of-funds, specialist managers and co-investment structures rather than dismissing the asset class altogether. The findings suggest a growing interest in investment models that combine long-term innovation with prudent portfolio management.
This is where Aspire11's model is a worthy example. Rather than expecting pension funds to build venture expertise internally, the platform gives institutional investors access to experienced venture managers and mature private technology companies. By doing so, it offers a practical way for long-term institutional capital to participate more actively in innovation while remaining aligned with pension funds' investment objectives.
Europe already has one of the world's largest pools of long-term capital. As initiatives like Aspire11 emerge, the conversation is shifting towards how that capital can play a greater role in supporting the continent's next generation of technology companies.
Member discussion