Trade Republic reached a €12.5 billion valuation (about $14.6 billion) in a December 2025 secondary share sale led by Founders Fund — 10M+ customers, €150B AUM. What it does, how it earns, who backs it, and the open questions.

Bavarian-born Andreas von Bechtolsheim is the most successful German in Silicon Valley — net worth $31–35 billion, #5 richest German globally, the man who wrote Google's first $100,000 check. He is also the quietest. Inside his DACH deep-tech portfolio — KONUX, Black Semiconductor, USound, LiveEO — the Hermann Hauser co-invest pattern, and why he is the operating opposite of Peter Thiel.

Catch up on German startup news: unicorns, major funding rounds, and more in our summer 2021 wrap-up. #startupnews