Accel was already one of Silicon Valley’s most successful venture capital groups when it decided in 2000 to open its first overseas office in London.
Since then, Accel has become a prolific backer of European start-ups, including consumer tech companies Spotify, Vinted and Monzo, games groups Rovio and Supercell, and corporate software groups such as Snyk and UiPath. It raised a new $650mn early-stage fund last year, after a study by Dealroom and Sifted found Accel had backed more European “unicorns” (private companies valued at more than $1bn) than any other VC between 2005 and 2023.
Harry Nelis is one of Accel’s longest-serving partners in Europe, joining the firm in 2004. A former start-up founder, engineer and investment banker, he led early investments in enterprise software groups Celonis and Personio, international payments group Zepz (formerly WorldRemit), and travel site Kayak.