Nova Angels

The MANIFESTO

"Money and technology are abundant. Exceptional talent is not. AI is collapsing the cost of building and distributing technology. A handful of the right people can outperform entire organizations. Exceptional founders with rare judgment, velocity, and ambition now have more leverage than at any point in history. Nova Angels Club exists to back exceptional founders, not hype. We prioritize people over pitch decks. We invest capital where talent is undeniable."

We are building a power-law portfolio by deploying many small tickets and doubling down on winners.

The nova advantage

Exceptional talent

Founding teams are vetted with the highest level of rigor and benchmarked agains the top 1% of talent of the Nova network.

Research & Labs

Business founders are connected to our network of Universities and Researchers, offering access to high-potential experimental projects.

Co-Investment

Our network includes institutionals, UHNW families, and Family Offices globally. Partner with us.

The Nova Advantage

Founder Support

Too early? Through our network, talents are introduced to portfolio companies and internal development programs with top-notch field experts.

Research & Labs

Academic founders are connected to our network of Universities and Researchers, offering access to high-potential experimental projects.

Co-Investment

Our network includes institutionals, UHNW families, and Family Offices globally. Partner with us.

Investor Profile

Full details & Requirements

Requirements

General: Active (multiple startups/year), risk-neutral or risk-loving, global interest, following high-speed growth projects.

US Investors: Must be Section D accredited investors.

EU Investors: Must have financial ability to commit 20-30K of yearly investments, or to join 2-3 deals.

Minimum Ticket

Nova with active Membership €5,000

Nova with non-active Membership €10,000

External Investors €15,000

Fiscality & Structure

Documents provided for tax compliance in your country of residence.

US Note: The SPV will not result in a PFIC.

Financial Mechanics

SPV Management (Per investor, if >20 investors) €100

Notarized Expenses (Split among SPV angels)~€1,500 total

Individual Exit Fee
Partial: 1% (min €2,500) | Secondary: 1% (min €1,000)

Common Expenses:
Software, events, ads. Majority ruling on yearly voluntary commitment.

Exit Strategy

A full exit is always the goal. However, liquidity is flexible. Investors can execute individual partial or full exits with other SPV co-investors or approved third parties.

Join as Investor

About us

Nova Angels Club is a strategic initiative launched by our members, Andrea Manzi and Angad Rikhy, incubated within the Nova top talent network.

With a sharp investment thesis and a precision-engineered infrastructure, we are positioned to lead the next evolution of the European startup ecosystem, backed by the Nova core principles: talent, merit and mutual support.

We leverage a fully digital deal-by-deal SPV model and an innovative syndicate structure, where angels indipendently choose the best investments to follow and join.

We aim to unite the world's most astute investors, acting as a disruptive force in EU early-stage investments.

Investment Thesis

Core Beliefs

We invest in exceptional founders, typically at the inflection point where speed of learning and traction replace pure storytelling, optimizing for asymmetric upside and capital efficiency.

‍Look for: Urgent problem, scalable wedge, defensibility, evidence of top talented teams.

‍Avoid: Heavy capex pre-PMF, restrictive terms, narrative-driven founders.

Framework

Our screening framework assesses key founders and startups details, ensuring high-quality deals and strict due-diligence standards:

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Ensuring top-notch deals for the angels own portfolio choices.

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Clear deal flow process platform for angels, going smoothly from deck to deal.

Portfolio

We construct a power-law portfolio to absorb losses and capture outliers, using clean SAFEs/Notes at Pre-seed/Seed stage.

Allocation: Base (small bets), Middle (reserves), Peak (double down).

‍Goal: Provide runway to the next funding round.

Data

€50-500k checks in pre-seed / seed stage. No geographical / sector constraints.

Stage

Early Stage

Pre-seed / Seed

Check Size

>€50K

Entry ticket

Geography

Planet Earth

Global Mandate

Sector

Agnostic

Opportunity driven

Founding Team Archetype

Exceptional team, with clear roadmap, solving a real problem with a known paying user with a product mvp that is useful and usable, with technical uniqueness and a clear value proposition

For Startups

The path to partnership

Steps to the process

1. Click on apply

2. If selected, prepare to speak for a quick chat (30 minutes) about your startup. (Nova members founders will go straight to the next phase)

3. Once done, the next step would be to speak with full team and investors, requiring specifics information and initial due diligence (60 minutes).

4. If you're here, then it's done. Prepare to align with our team, receive the capital and all the help to grow 100X.

In parallel to the application process, given the early stage nature of the investments, we ensure due diligence and vetting on founding team through the Nova screening process.

Odds & Results

Up to 2% startups are selected for investments, but submitting to NAC is a win-win:

1. Investment scenario: you'll be selected, which means on average from >50k to 1.5Mln with tickets potential over that through our co-investors.

2. Non-Investment scenario: no investments, but you have the possibility to be nominated within the Nova membership, accessing an elite network of professionals and entrepeneurs, giving you tons of possibility to grow your startup.

Startup Application

The Round Process in a nutshell

The deal crew approach enables you to jump only on the deals you want, through information processing being taken on by other angels interested and shared to everyone through our platform.

Inbound & Valuation

Opportunity arrives via our inbound channel. The operational team assesses valuation and thesis fit.

Deal Crew Formation

A micro-group forms the "Deal Crew" to meet the founders.

Due Diligence & Decision

Deep dive into roadmap and details. Final decision time.

Execution

Funds are wired. The SPV is launched. You are now an angel investor.

Investing in Early Stage Startups

The MANIFESTO

The nova advantage

Exceptional talent

Research & Labs

Co-Investment

The Nova Advantage

Founder Support

Research & Labs

Co-Investment

Requirements

Minimum Ticket

Fiscality & Structure

Financial Mechanics

Exit Strategy

About us

Investment Thesis

Steps to the process

Odds & Results

The Round Process in a nutshell

Ready to join us?