Our Team
The team at Tradition Meets Future has more than 70 years of experience in investment management and in the structuring of more than €20 billion of assets throughout various market conditions and economic cycles. The founding partners have a combination of complementary knowledge and experience and are deeply connected with the start-up ecosystem.
Dr Sven Janssen
Founding Partner & Managing Director
- 20+ years investment experience
- €3.5 billion SME financing
- Reviewed over 2,000 corporate investment cases
- Sustainable finance & ESG expert
- Former Head of Debt Capital Markets
- Former Board Member of an ESMA-regulated Credit Rating Agency
- Board Member of several companies
- Bank Metzler, Bank Sal. Oppenheim, Macquarie, Banque Oddo, Scope Ratings
Dr Gerald Leitner
Founding Partner
- 35+ years industry experience
- Managing Director at a New York US$10 billion credit hedge fund
- Structured transactions with top tier investment banks
- Co-head of Fixed Income Research
- Executive in Residence and Visiting Faculty, ESMT Berlin
- Professor Columbia University
- Ph.D. in Computer Science from UCLA
- Bear Stearns, Paine Webber, Mariner Investment Group
Dr Jürgen Allerkamp
Senior Advisor
- 25+ years as a board member in corporate banking
- Former CEO of Investitionsbank Berlin (IBB), a leading venture capital investor
- Managed EUR 1.4 billion in investments across 200+ Berlin-based tech companies
- Studied law in Göttingen, Lausanne, and Münster
- PhD from the University of Bonn
- Supervisory Board Member at Indus Holding AG, a publicly listed private equity company
- Recognized as a seasoned expert in Germany's corporate banking sector
Dr Stefanos (Stephen) Capsaskis
Senior Advisor
- 20+ years in technology venture capital and commercial banking
- Managed tech business-focused venture capital portfolios, including as a Principal of 7L Capital Partners
- Started finance career at the London Branch of Ergobank, now part of Eurobank
- MEng and PhD in chemical engineering from the University of Cambridge
- Mentors early-stage tech businesses and acts as an independent director of Marfin Investment Group S.A
- Lectures on finance for early-stage ventures to graduate students at Cambridge University
Alex Hammond
Investment Associate
- Healthcare and life science investment expert
- Former Analyst at Epidarex Capital, specializing in life science and medical technologies
- Worked as a research associate at VMIC in Oxford and Barn4 in Cambridge
- MSc in Innovation and Entrepreneurship (Biotechnology) from the University of Edinburgh
- BSc in Biological Sciences from the University of Warwick
Rachel Lawson
Senior Advisor
- 20 years of experience in executive roles with a focus on financial strategy
- Background in private equity, credit analysis, and corporate finance
- Experience serving on various boards, providing governance insights
- Global perspective from living and working across three continents
- Graduated from MIT Sloan with an MBA and ESCP-Europe with a MiM
- Holds French and Togolese nationality
Johanna Kunze
Investment Analyst
- Enrolled in a trilingual International Management program, pursuing a double master's degree
- Strong analytical skills, financial acumen, and a global perspective on market trends and economic factors
- Background in customer service and proficient in software tools
- Fluent in German, French, and English
- Focuses on market research, financial analysis, investment reporting, and performance monitoring