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In Germany most start-ups are self-funded with maximum personal risk. That means that you only fail once, after that you'll never be able to recover from bankru

In Germany most start-ups are self-funded with maximum personal risk. That means that you only fail once, after that you'll never be able to recover from bankruptcy only to do your next thing. As Germans are not known to be risk taking folks it's understandable why there are slim chances for the next Silicon Valley in Germany. It's all about risk and risk taking. Tweak those parameters economy-wise, then we talk about bold entrepreneurship.

beberlei 8y ago
I doubt that is true, do you have numbers for this claim? I see many companies founding limited structures (UG or GmbH) to have avoid maximum personal risk. It can be done with just 1€ of capital.
- dschuetz 8y ago
  You still need liability capital for a GmbH (e.g. LLC) which most start-ups just don't have. They start off single or as a GbR with a second or more partners, and then eventually change the company liability type to GmbH, when they generated the capital needed. A real start-up doesn't have to be a GmbH at all. In fact about 2/3 are single start-ups in Germany with maximum personal risk, not even GbR which is only 8%. The rest are GmbH with 30% which also counts start-ups with a bigger company as backer. That paper is a bit dated, and in German, but still the general assumption that most start-ups are poor remains true for Europe, not only Germany. https://www.destatis.de/DE/Publikationen/WirtschaftStatistik/UnternehmenGewerbeanzeigen/Unternehmensdemografie_62013.pdf https://www.destatis.de/DE/Publikationen/WirtschaftStatistik... What is true though, a UG (e.g. Ltd), is an alternative to GmbH in terms of liability and capital. The 1 euro capital is a joke, imho. Because no sane credit institute would lend you money when they see your tiny liability investment. However, it is possible to make your business legal and profitable, and then borrow some money. But, honestly, starting with literally nothing is like starting a new game at maximum difficulty and perma-death, and who does that in RL?

beberlei 8y ago

I doubt that is true, do you have numbers for this claim? I see many companies founding limited structures (UG or GmbH) to have avoid maximum personal risk. It can be done with just 1€ of capital.

dschuetz 8y ago
You still need liability capital for a GmbH (e.g. LLC) which most start-ups just don't have. They start off single or as a GbR with a second or more partners, and then eventually change the company liability type to GmbH, when they generated the capital needed. A real start-up doesn't have to be a GmbH at all. In fact about 2/3 are single start-ups in Germany with maximum personal risk, not even GbR which is only 8%. The rest are GmbH with 30% which also counts start-ups with a bigger company as backer. That paper is a bit dated, and in German, but still the general assumption that most start-ups are poor remains true for Europe, not only Germany. https://www.destatis.de/DE/Publikationen/WirtschaftStatistik/UnternehmenGewerbeanzeigen/Unternehmensdemografie_62013.pdf https://www.destatis.de/DE/Publikationen/WirtschaftStatistik... What is true though, a UG (e.g. Ltd), is an alternative to GmbH in terms of liability and capital. The 1 euro capital is a joke, imho. Because no sane credit institute would lend you money when they see your tiny liability investment. However, it is possible to make your business legal and profitable, and then borrow some money. But, honestly, starting with literally nothing is like starting a new game at maximum difficulty and perma-death, and who does that in RL?