The board of directors of the Finnish Venture Capital Association elected one new board member and four new deputy board members at the association’s annual meeting. Samuli Sipilä from Juuri Partners was elected as a board member. Erkka Niemi from Voland Partners, Claes Mikko Nilsen from NordicNinja, Paavo Räisänen from Maki.vc, and Kimmo Vanne from MB Funds were elected as deputy board members. We asked our new board members what inspires them in the venture capital and private equity industry, and for their views on the market for the ongoing year.
Samuli Sipilä is the founding partner and CEO of Juuri Partners. Samuli has over 30 years of experience in investment and capital markets. In the private equity and venture capital industry, Samuli has acted as a fund investor for 10 years, first as an institutional investor and then founding and managing a private equity and venture capital fund. For another 10 years as a private equity and venture capital investor, Samuli has invested in and supported entrepreneurs of growth companies through Juuri Funds. Prior to Juuri Partners, Samuli was the CEO of OP-Funds for 4 years.
“The appeal of private equity and venture capital is the teamwork and the endless versatility of the work, the countless interactions with people, the challenging nature and the great feeling when things progress and finally reach the finish line.
Finland now has an excellent opportunity to strengthen the role of private equity and venture capital. We need to bring investors into the discussion as owners and vitality boosters. We need to make our operating environment more competitive by European standards and attract more international capital.”
Erkka Niemi is a founding partner of Voland Partners, a private equity firm focused on growth investments. Prior to joining Voland, Erkka was a technology entrepreneur and, the CTO of Silicon Solutions, during their IPO. He holds a degree in financial economics and a PhD in information systems from Aalto University.
“I am inspired by working with entrepreneurs of international growth companies. It’s great to be involved in building Finnish success stories over the long term. We founded Voland in the midst of the Covid years and the market has since fluctuated from one crisis to the next. In that sense, it looks like 2025 will be a familiar year. However, I am optimistic about the future, and I am sure that the best growth companies and private equity and venture capital investors will continue to thrive this year.”
Claes Mikko Nilsen is responsible for Investor Relations at NordicNinja. He has been involved in the Finnish private equity and venture capital scene since 2010, building the industry ecosystem through AaltoES, Slush, Startup Sauna, FiBAN and FVCA.
“I have always been inspired by the energy and ambition of startups, especially those that promote sustainable values, where risk investment is based on the belief in the team’s ability to solve growth challenges. I think Finland is one of the best places in the world to build global solutions from innovation thanks to our educational environment, infrastructure, and even our weather conditions (6 months a year of the best coding weather in the world!).
Given the changing market environment, the private equity and venture capital market looks interesting but uncertain this year, as investors are still waiting for evidence of profitability and sustainable business models before making major investment decisions. Finland’s solutions to strengthen the investment environment will therefore play a major role – we already have an established reputation as a cradle of innovation, but we need closer links with international private equity and venture capital investors and institutional players to enable Finnish funds to attract more foreign capital. This will support the financing of domestic growth companies and strengthen Finland’s position as a competitive and innovative investment destination globally.”
Paavo Räisänen is a partner at Maki.vc. Before joining Maki in 2018, Paavo gained ten years of experience in business development and strategy work from startups to bigger, listed companies. At Maki, Paavo has focused on B2B companies ranging from deep technology to enterprise software and has made investments not only in Finland but also in companies based in Norway, Estonia, France and the Netherlands. Paavo holds a master’s degree in industrial engineering from Aalto University.
“I have been interested in new technologies since I was a child, and the private equity and venture capital industry offers the opportunity to contribute to the development and commercialisation of new technologies. Many of our portfolio companies are tackling some of the world’s most significant challenges, which brings a strong sense of purpose to the work. The biggest inspiration in my work comes from the entrepreneurs – there are very few jobs where you get to work with such talented, innovative and energetic people.
Overall, the start of the year has been a good year for the private equity and venture capital market: quality investments have been found, further funding rounds have taken place, and the exit market has seen a pick-up. The onset of the trade war and its knock-on effects are likely to affect market dynamics, adding a clear element of uncertainty to the outlook for the rest of the year.”
Kimmo Vanne has 20 years of experience in the private equity and venture capital and M&A industry, of which the last 10 years as a partner in MB Funds. Previously, he worked in the M&A and strategy teams of KPMG and EY. Kimmo holds a master’s degree in economics and law from the University of Turku.
“The private equity and venture capital sector is at the heart of the economy, creating sustainable growth and prosperity in Finland. We support growth-oriented entrepreneurs, renew business models and take companies to international markets. All of this provides an opportunity to participate in the economic and corporate renewal moments in the life cycle of companies, and it is inspiring to be part of this community.
External uncertainties are unlikely to diminish in the coming years, which will require companies to be more resilient and to seek growth increasingly from outside the domestic market, for example through structural arrangements. I believe that the domestic private equity and venture capital industry is in an excellent position to support Finnish growth companies even in slightly more difficult economic times.”
Riku Asikainen from Evli Growth Partners was elected as Chair of the Board. Juho Frilander, Juha Peltola, Jussi Sainiemi, Mia Sirkiä and Maria Wasastjerna will continue as full members of the Board. In addition, Tommi Äijälä was promoted from deputy member to full member. Alexander Antas, Reima Linnanvirta and Mari Simula will continue as deputy members. The complete composition of the board can be found on our website.
