For years, the narrative around women in Czech tech focused almost exclusively on founders. We celebrated the builders. But over the years, the story has shifted. We are witnessing a powerful wave of female capital entering the market, as women who have exited successful companies, run family offices, or lead investment committees are now deploying their wealth back into the ecosystem.
The launch of initiatives like the Lumus Investment Collective marked a tipping point, demonstrating that female investors aren’t just a diversity metric but an untapped source of liquidity for early-stage startups. If you are raising a pre-seed or seed round in Prague, you cannot afford to ignore these 10 women investors in Prague
Simona Kijonková
Often referred to as the First Lady of Czech E-commerce, Simona Kijonková built her reputation and her fortune as the founder of Zásilkovna (Packeta). Starting from scratch, she grew the logistics firm into a multinational giant operating across dozens of markets before orchestrating one of the largest exits in regional history to a consortium of investors. Her background is a mix of hard-nosed logistics operations and digital innovation, giving her a unique perspective on what it takes to scale a physical network using software. She is a self-made entrepreneur who transitioned from running a single shop to managing a multi-billion-dollar empire, bringing a level of operational grit that few investors can match.
Today, Kijonková operates primarily through JSK Investments, the family office she established with her husband. Having transitioned from operator to a heavy-hitting investor, she brings the firepower of institutional capital with the agility of an angel investor. Her investment thesis is pragmatic and deeply grounded in unit economics, targeting sectors where technology intersects with the physical world, such as robotics, e-commerce infrastructure, and automation. Unlike typical angels who might write small checks and step back, Kijonková actively shapes the strategy of her portfolio companies, seeking founders who demonstrate the same resilience and scalability she has proven in her own career.
Silke Horáková
Silke Horáková brings a formidable background in private equity and institutional finance to the Prague ecosystem. With a PhD in Economics and years of experience in senior positions at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and private equity funds, she has long been a pillar of the region’s financial sector. She served as the CEO of the Czech Private Equity & Venture Capital Association (CVCA), giving her an unmatched network across the CEE investment landscape. Beyond finance, she is the co-owner of Albatros Media, the largest book publishing company in the Czech Republic, where she combines her financial acumen with a deep appreciation for media and education.
Currently, Horáková is best known as the co-founder of Tilia Impact Ventures, the country’s first dedicated social impact fund. She proved that social impact and financial return aren’t mutually exclusive, operating with the soul of an angel investor despite the VC structure. She is hands-on, patient, and deeply committed to the founder’s mission, making her the first call for any startup tackling climate tech, education, or social inclusion. Her approach is data-driven yet empathetic, seeking scalable solutions to systemic societal problems rather than merely generating quick revenue.
Zuzana Zamborská
Zuzana Zamborská is a key figure in democratizing access to venture capital for women in Central Europe. With a background in diversity consulting and marketing, she identified a critical gap in the market where, while there were many capable women with capital, few had access to high-quality deal flow. She co-founded the Lumus Investment Collective to bridge this divide, creating an educational and investment platform designed specifically for female angel investors. Her demographic focus is on empowering a new generation of women, often professionals from corporate or tech backgrounds, to become active participants in the startup economy rather than passive observers.
As an investor, Zamborská’s power lies in the syndicate model she champions. She brings a network of informed investors with her, pooling capital to back high-growth tech startups. She has a keen eye for health-tech, sustainability, and femtech, which are sectors that have historically been underfunded by male-dominated VC firms. Her investment style is collaborative and community-driven, often involving her network to provide mentorship and diverse expertise to the founders they backs, ensuring that capital comes with significant strategic value.
Lucie Brešová
Lucie Brešová is synonymous with hyper-growth in the Czech tech scene. As the former Managing Director of Kiwi.com, she played a pivotal role in transforming the travel technology company from a small startup to a global unicorn with billions in revenue. Her career has been defined by managing chaos, she specialises in the operational and financial systems required to scale a company rapidly without compromising its stability. With a background in finance and strategy, she understands the internal workings of a startup, from HR processes to cash flow management, better than almost anyone in the region.
Today, Brešová uses that operational scar tissue to help early-stage founders as an angel investor and mentor. She tends to invest in SaaS and B2B platforms where her specific expertise in scaling operations can make a significant impact. Founders pitch her not just for the capital, but for the how-to on growing from 10 to 1,000 employees. She is particularly active in supporting founders who have a strong product vision but need guidance on execution and organisational structure, acting as a bridge between the chaotic early days and the disciplined growth phase.
Terézia Jacová
Terézia Jacová brings deep institutional discipline to the world of angel investing. With a robust background at Neulogy Ventures, one of the region’s pioneering VC firms, she has years of experience in deal sourcing, due diligence, and portfolio management. Her career has been built on bridging the gap between the informal, relationship-based world of angels and the rigid, metrics-driven structure of venture capital. She is a true ecosystem builder, having assessed hundreds of business plans and mentored numerous startups across the CEE region, providing her with a panoramic view of the market’s evolution.
As a co-founder of Lumus Investment Collective, Jacová applies this institutional rigour to the angel syndicate model. She is particularly active in scouting deep tech and companies with diverse founding teams, looking for intellectual property and defensible technology moats. For founders, having Jacová on the cap table is a significant signal of legitimacy to future Series A investors. She helps startups professionalise their operations early on, preparing them for the scrutiny of larger institutional rounds while providing the supportive capital needed to get there.
Andrea Lauren
Andrea Lauren is a veteran of the high-stakes investment banking world, with a career that spans London and Central Europe. As a key partner at Rockaway Capital, she manages a portfolio that includes some of the region’s most successful digital economy companies. Her background is steeped in corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions (M&A), and equity capital markets, bringing a level of financial sophistication that many early-stage startups desperately lack. She represents the savvy investor demographic, who understands not only how to build a product but also how to structure a company for a global exit or IPO.
While Rockaway acts as a major strategic investor, Lauren’s influence in the ecosystem often functions like that of a super-angel. She has been pivotal in fintech and e-commerce investments, helping startups navigate complex regulatory environments and connect with global capital markets. She is a connector in the truest sense, linking Prague’s promising startups with international investors and partners. Her investment approach is strategic and long-term, often favouring companies that have the potential to consolidate fragmented markets or disrupt traditional financial infrastructures.
Petra Končelíková
Petra Končelíková represents the younger, more aggressive side of the Czech investment landscape. As a founder and general partner at Nation 1, a VC fund dedicated to pre-seed and seed stages, she sits at the intersection of angel investing and venture capital. Her background involves deep immersion in the grassroots startup community, giving her access to deals that are often too raw or early for traditional VCs. She understands the “student founder” demographic intimately and is comfortable betting on potential and talent rather than relying solely on established metrics.
Nation 1 is known for its speed and willingness to take risks, often acting as the institutional angel for first-time founders. Končelíková is heavily involved in scouting these early-stage deals, looking for founders with global ambition and grit. She bets on young, unproven talent, making her a crucial ally for those stepping out of university or their first jobs to build something new. Her involvement often comes with hands-on support in product-market fit and initial hiring, helping raw ideas transform into investable businesses.
Kateřina Zychová
Kateřina Zychová is a powerhouse with a resume that reads like a Wall Street wish list. Having worked for giants like Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan in London and New York, she brings a hard-nosed, private equity mindset to the Czech market. She is the CEO of Verdi Capital, a firm she founded to leverage her global financial experience in the CEE region. Her demographic profile is that of the high-finance professional returning home to deploy capital, experienced, demanding, and incredibly well-connected in global financial hubs.
While her firm often looks at larger, innovative projects and renewable energy, Zychová is a key figure for startups seeking to bridge the gap between cutting-edge technology and bankable assets. Her investment style is rigorous and focused on financial sustainability and clear exit paths. Her involvement signals that a startup is ready for serious financial engineering and scaling. She tends to favour fintech and B2B solutions where complex financial modelling and global market understanding are required, offering founders a level of strategic advice that is rare in the early-stage ecosystem.
Hana Fořtová
Hana Fořtová is the Co-Founder and CEO of Frusack, a company that pioneered compostable produce bags. She successfully navigated the challenges of building a sustainable, physical product and scaling it internationally. Her background is in business development and sustainability, and she has firsthand experience with the rollercoaster of founder life, from navigating manufacturing hurdles to achieving global sales. This shared experience makes her incredibly relatable to the founders she mentors and invests in.
After moving on from Frusack, Fořtová has become a vocal mentor and emerging investor, with a focus on the sustainability and circular economy sectors. While her check size may differ from that of a massive family office, her value add is significantly higher for consumer brands and green-tech startups. She invests her time and social capital into founders building circular economy solutions and direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands, helping them navigate the specific pitfalls of supply chains and greenwashing. She looks for authenticity and tangible environmental impact alongside financial viability.
Markéta Bláhová
Markéta Bláhová helped build one of the Czech Republic’s true travel-tech success stories as a co-founder of Daytrip, a platform connecting travellers with local drivers for city-to-city transfers. She helped steer the company through the existential crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic to renewed growth, a journey that gave her invaluable crisis management skills. Her background is operational and resilient, defined by the ability to pivot and adapt in a volatile global market. She represents the “pay it forward” culture that is finally taking root in Prague.
Now, Bláhová is increasingly looked to as an advisor and investor for the next generation of travel and platform startups. She invests in marketplaces and consumer-facing technologies where trust and logistics are key components. Founders value her not just for her capital, but also for her insights into building global supply chains and managing remote teams. She is part of a growing demographic of successful founders who are reinvesting their exit proceeds and expertise back into the ecosystem’s newcomers, fostering a cycle of innovation and mentorship.