Credit: LEAPA
On Thursday 13 February 2025, the Luxembourg Private Equity & Venture Capital Association (LPEA) announced the successful completion of its first VC MasterClass Executive Education programme.
The programme is designed to foster a deep understanding of the venture capital industry and cultivate a pipeline of talent for Luxembourg’s growing ecosystem.
Co-developed by LPEA and three of its leading member firms, namely Expon Capital, Mangrove Capital Partners and MiddleGame Ventures, this initiative brought together expertise from industry veterans, with Jérôme Wittamer, Hans-Jürgen Schmitz and Pascal Bouvier representing their respective firms. The programme was spearheaded by Evi Gkini, responsible for the LPEA Academy, who LPEA said played a key role in shaping its curriculum and organising the classes.
Following months of preparation and promotion, the inaugural edition of the VC MasterClass ran entirely online from September to December 2024. It featured 21 lecturers delivering 34 modules, each lasting a minimum of two hours, to seventeen selected participants. The lecturers came from fourteen Luxembourg-based entities, including Catalpa Ventures, Cycle Group, DLA Piper, Encevo, the European Investment Fund, Expon Capital, Fidelity International Strategic Ventures, Luxembourg Business Angels Network, Mangrove Capital Partners, MiddleGame Ventures, Multiple Capital, Pitch Me First, Promus Ventures and Vesalius BioCapital.
As reported by LPEA, the programme provided comprehensive coverage of the Venture Capital business, addressing key topics such as the history of Venture Capital, startup business models, fund operations, venture investment strategies, portfolio management and fundraising. Additionally, it explored specific investment verticals, including deep tech, space tech, health tech, fund of funds, fintech, software as a service (SaaS) and climate tech, among others.
The VC MasterClass concluded with a networking cocktail on Tuesday 4 February 2025 at LPEA’s new office, offering participants an opportunity to connect with lecturers and fellow peers in a more informal setting.
Building on the success of this first edition, LPEA said it plans to launch a second edition of the VC MasterClass Executive Education later this year. The next edition is expected to expand its strategic partnerships to further strengthen Luxembourg’s position as a centre of excellence in Venture Capital within the financial services industry.
