Martina Pfeifer
About Martina Pfeifer
Martina Pfeifer is based in Frankfurt. She studied European Business at ESB Business School, Reutlingen University (2003 to 2007, per RocketReach). Earlier in her career she was an analyst in the Financial Institutions Group at Goldman Sachs in Frankfurt.
She then worked at the private equity firm Advent International as a director for about 15 years, according to Verdane. She focused on digitalisation and technology. MarketScreener lists her Advent role as ending in 2024.
She now holds board roles. She has been on the supervisory board of flatexDEGIRO since 2025 and on the advisory board of Verdane. RocketReach also lists her as a non-executive director at Foster Clark Products and as founder and partner of Whistler GmbH. She is a co-founder of encourageventures e.V., a network of investors and founders that started in 2020 when a group of women investors, including her, invested in the HR tech company Tandemploy. She is also involved in Level 20 DACH.
Crunchbase lists 7 personal investments for her. They include toern, NutriUnited, Veli, ExoMatter (angel round, December 2023, alongside Ina Schlie), apadua and Lilio. Tracxn lists a Stay Awesome seed round on 14 December 2023.
Many of her deals are alongside other encourageventures members. Press coverage of Lilio's seed round names her as an earlier investor there.
In a Q&A with the Evangelistas female business angel community, she said she invests to support early-stage founders and for a possible long-term return. She said she does due diligence together with other female angels. She also said she prefers founder teams with a clear plan for earning revenue, ideally already tested.
The AI round we can confirm is mika. The Berlin company raised a €6M seed round led by Smedvig Ventures, announced on 23 September 2026. She took part as an angel, listed as Martina Pfeifer (encourageventures). Other participants included Wecken & Cie. (Care4 AG), Dennis Bemmann, Michael Brehm and Johannes Ditterich. Keen Venture Partners and Dutch Founders Fund increased their stakes.
mika builds AI-native bookkeeping, VAT and tax filing for German GmbHs and UGs, with in-house accountants reviewing the output. On LinkedIn she wrote that she invested because of the team, especially founder Agnieszka Walorska. She also wrote that she now files her own tax return through mika.
Her public deals are mostly in Germany and mostly at angel and seed stage, often with other angels. Her own background is in financial services and technology. She has said she backs early-stage founders and supports more women in entrepreneurship and angel investing. She has not published a check size, so none is listed here.
- mika: AI-native bookkeeping and tax software for German small companies. €6M seed announced September 2026.
- Lilio: seed round investor via encourageventures, per Crunchbase and CB Insights.
- ExoMatter: angel round in December 2023, alongside Ina Schlie, per Crunchbase.
- Stay Awesome: seed round on 14 December 2023, per Tracxn.
- Tandemploy: HR tech company. A group of women investors including her invested in October 2020, per encourageventures.
- toern, NutriUnited, Veli, apadua: listed on her Crunchbase profile. Round dates are not public there.
- getmika.de/en/press/seed-funding-6m
- tech.eu/2026/09/23/german-ai-startup-mika-raises-eur6m-to-simplify-acc
- linkedin.com/in/martinapfeifer
- linkedin.com/in/martina-pfeifer-b2aa8675
- crunchbase.com/person/martina-pfeifer
- verdane.com/team/martina-pfeifer
- marketscreener.com/insider/MARTINA-PFEIFER-A0PDH0
- rocketreach.co/martina-pfeifer-email_644931904
Investing activity
Martina Pfeifer appears in 1 AI deal tracked by the Lounge deals desk. The rounds are mostly Seed, with a median round size of $7M. The most recent is mika (Seed, €6M, Sep 2026).
Martina Pfeifer most often invests alongside Smedvig Ventures, Dutch Founders Fund, Johannes Ditterich and Michael Brehm, and the companies they back on Lounge are mostly in AI.
Deals
Frequently asked questions about Martina Pfeifer
Has Martina Pfeifer invested in AI startups?
Yes. She took part in mika's €6M seed round, announced on 23 September 2026. The company builds AI-native bookkeeping and tax software for small German companies.
What is Martina Pfeifer's angel check size?
She has not published a check size. Her public deals are angel and seed rounds, often alongside other angels.
What does Martina Pfeifer look for in founders?
In a community Q&A she said she prefers founder teams with a clear way to earn revenue, ideally already tested. On mika, she said she invested because of the team.
Where is Martina Pfeifer based and what does she do?
She is based in Frankfurt. She is a business angel and co-founder of encourageventures. She sits on the supervisory board of flatexDEGIRO and the advisory board of Verdane, and is a former Advent International director.
What is encourageventures?
encourageventures is an investor and founder network that she co-founded. It started when a group of women investors invested in Tandemploy in 2020. It aims to bring more women into investing.
Which stages and regions does Martina Pfeifer invest in?
Her public deals are mostly angel and seed rounds in German startups.
Is Martina Pfeifer an angel investor?
Yes. Martina Pfeifer invests personally as an angel.
What AI companies has Martina Pfeifer invested in?
Martina Pfeifer's AI investments include mika. The 1 round on Lounge are listed on this page with amounts, dates and co-investors.
What stage does Martina Pfeifer invest at?
In the rounds tracked on Lounge, Martina Pfeifer has invested at Seed, with a median round of $7M.
Who does Martina Pfeifer co-invest with?
Martina Pfeifer's most frequent co-investors on Lounge are Smedvig Ventures (1 deal), Dutch Founders Fund (1 deal), Johannes Ditterich (1 deal), Michael Brehm (1 deal) and Keen Venture Partners (1 deal).