ETFS Capital

Managing Partner Martyn James leads investment decisions, supported by Investment Director Ian Lansdell. Chairman Graham Tuckwell and Vice Chairman Mark Weeks — the founders of ETF Securities — are deeply involved in portfolio strategy and board-level counsel. The firm's small senior team means every investment gets direct principal attention.

Chairman Graham Tuckwell and Vice Chairman Mark Weeks were the founders of ETF Securities, which pioneered physically backed commodity ETFs. They sold the business and deployed their own capital to create ETFS Capital in 2018. The firm carries that exchange-listed product DNA into venture-stage fintech, giving portfolio founders access to capital-markets structuring expertise uncommon at Series A.

The firm's stated preference is to lead Series A rounds, though it also co-leads or participates when the syndicate context warrants it. ETFS Capital deliberately limits the number of new investments per year to remain an active, operational partner to every founder post-close.

The firm invests exclusively in early-stage European fintech businesses. It does not target biotech, deep-tech hardware, clean energy, or consumer brands. Even within financial services, its partners filter for teams where their own capital-markets and investment-management backgrounds can add authentic founding-stage value.

There is no publicly disclosed philanthropic foundation or sidecar vehicle. ETFS Capital's architecture includes the venture fund itself and a holding-company parent that can engage in public-market activism, as seen in its 2024 governance push at a listed ETF provider. That parent sits outside the venture fund's LP structure.

ETFS Capital co-invests through syndicates on rounds where it is not the lead. Its team is comfortable collaborating with other early-stage managers. The firm's small annual cadence suggests it uses co-investment to maintain portfolio-concentration discipline while still accessing well-syndicated founders.

The founding principals built and scaled ETF Securities, a regulated asset-management business that listed exchange-traded products across multiple jurisdictions. That required deep engagement with regulators, authorized participants, market-makers, and distribution platforms — the very infrastructure fintech founders must navigate. Managing Partner Martyn James and the investment team bring additional front-line venture and operator experience in European financial services.