The Schulte Group has launched INNOPORT, a dedicated venture capital unit which aims to identify investment opportunities in the global maritime start-up ecosystem and support those entrepreneurs in bringing their products to market.
The INNOPORT team, based in Hamburg, Limassol and Singapore, is headed by Yiannis Sykas, Director of Strategy and Product Development at Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement (BSM).
“At INNOPORT, we want to build bridges and open doors wherever possible. In essence, INNOPORT provides start-ups with the right network and the right capital to scale up their business and to bring their ideas into fruition,” said Mr Sykas.
INNOPORT says it will begin by predominantly supporting high-potential early-stage maritime and logistics start-ups in Europe and Asia, though it will aim to maintain the flexibility to collaborate with businesses from all geographic areas going forward.
“INNOPORT was founded to support early-stage ventures, typically pre-revenue companies at the idea or prototype stage. We invest in breakthrough technology and disruptive business models that address a real pain and have the potential to define new standards in their respective industries,” added Haymon Sinapius, INNOPORT’s Investment Manager for Asia.
“We want to see founders who actively challenge the status quo of how the maritime industry works, to make it better, safer and more efficient.”
