Van Lanschot Kempen

The venture capital program operates as a fund-of-funds, making commitments to external venture capital managers rather than investing directly in startups. This means the firm selects VC fund managers, underwrites their strategies, and blends them into diversified portfolios for clients. The underlying portfolio companies are held through the selected funds, not on Van Lanschot Kempen's balance sheet.

The program draws capital primarily from the firm's private banking clients—high-net-worth individuals and families—as well as from institutional mandates. The private bank acts as the distribution channel, giving the VC platform access to a steady capital base that is unusual among independent European fund-of-funds managers.

The firm emphasizes primary commitments to European venture capital managers, blending established funds with targeted exposure to emerging managers. The selection process includes quantitative track-record analysis, qualitative assessment of partnership dynamics, and reference checks across the venture ecosystem. The objective is to build portfolios that capture top-quartile performance while maintaining diversification across vintage years, sectors, and geographies.

The fund-of-funds investment program sits within the asset management pillar, while the merchant banking unit operates as a separate division providing M&A advisory, capital markets, and debt advisory services. These activities are structurally and operationally segregated, with information barriers in place to manage conflicts of interest.

The firm does not systematically disclose its underlying fund commitments or portfolio holdings to the public. Limited transparency is typical of private fund-of-funds structures, though institutional investors and prospective clients typically receive detailed breakdowns during due diligence and through regular portfolio reporting.

Van Lanschot Kempen does not publicly disclose a standard minimum commitment amount for its venture capital program. Participation thresholds are typically set according to local regulatory suitability frameworks and the client's overall wealth profile, with the private banking relationship determining access to the product.

The platform is predominantly European in its manager selection, reflecting the firm's home-market expertise and the deep venture ecosystems in the Netherlands, DACH region, Nordics, and broader continental Europe. The firm may selectively include global strategies, but the core allocation is to European VC.