Why Venture Capital is not for everybody with Florian Heinemann (Project A)

​At CODE, many teams build while bootstrapping or raising minimal funding – so this session is not “how to raise money”. Instead, it’s about making a strong founder decision: when venture capital is a powerful tool, and when it’s simply the wrong fit.

​Florian Heinemann, Founding Partner at Project A and CODE Trustee, will share practical frameworks and personal lessons on:

• ​how to think about VC vs. angels vs. bootstrapping

• ​what “venture-scale” really implies (and what it demands from a business)

• ​how to avoid common mistakes when choosing a funding path early on

​Schedule (18:00–20:00)

• ​Talk (incl. personal experiences)

• ​Live Q&A (bring your questions)

• ​Networking & drinks

​About Florian
Florian Heinemann is a Founding Partner at Project A Ventures and previously served as Managing Director at Rocket Internet (2007–2012). He has invested as an angel in 80+ startups, including Trivago, Zalando, Home24, and Groupon (among others).

​About Project A
Project A is an early-stage VC with offices in Berlin, Munich and London, known as “The Operational VC” for combining capital with hands-on support for founders across key company-building topics. In June 2025, Project A raised its latest fund (Fund V) at €325m, bringing total assets under management to €1.2bn.
Their portfolio includes companies such as Trade Republic, sennder, Quantum Systems, Knowunity and Voi.