Top Story: Scaleup Awards 2026, why growth only becomes strategic once it has structure
“Scaleups are not a label for us in 2026. They are a programme of work,” says Pascal Kopp, Head of Business Development & Origination at atares. “And the most interesting phase is the one where a company stops simply getting faster and starts thinking bigger,” adds Jan Pörschmann.
That is precisely the phase the Scaleup Awards make visible.
On 15 October, the Bundesverband Mergers & Acquisitions will present the M&A Awards once again. The Scaleup Award recognises transactions that do not merely fund inorganic growth but turn it into leadership capability. It is a prize you cannot buy, only earn. Entry is free, and the three best companies are invited to the M&A Award Night in the Tipizelt beside the Chancellery in Berlin.
A look back
Last year the Scaleup Award went to sennder. Anyone who was there remembers the conversations before and after rather more than the trophy itself. What comes together in that room is rare: founders who know the same growth curve from different directions, and investors who understand how much operational work sits behind scaling that looks effortless from the outside.
This year’s field of nominees shows the same range. We will not pre-empt any names. The selection process is strictly confidential, and atares has neither sight of nor influence over the decision. What can already be said is this: the submissions have become noticeably more mature. Less about the spectacular acquisition, more about how a company buys capability it could not build organically at the pace the market demands.
Buy and grow
Which brings us to our theme for the year. Inorganic growth is a considerable challenge for startups and scaleups, and at the same time a considerable opportunity to build a global business with a claim to leadership. The instinct to scale first and think about M&A later tends to cost the one thing that is scarcest: time.
What that looks like in practice was on show at the IBB event with sennder. Back in February, founders from the German tech ecosystem gathered at YPOG’s Berlin offices for the IBB Knowledge Dinner. Hosted jointly by IBB Ventures, YPOG and the Bundesverband Mergers & Acquisitions, the evening ran under the title “M&A as a Growth Hack: The Shortcut to Global Leadership”. Jan Pörschmann, Managing Partner at atares and Chairman of the Bundesverband M&A, moderated a discussion that tied the annual theme of Buy-then-Grow to current market conditions. At atares we support the M&A Award in the Scaleup category out of deep conviction. “Inorganic growth is a major challenge for startups and scaleups, and at the same time an enormous opportunity to build a global business with a claim to leadership,” says Rainer Wieser, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at atares.
For a personal perspective on the awards, see Jan Pörschmann’s recent LinkedIn video.
Applications and nominations for the Scaleup M&A Award 2026 are open until 31 August. To our peers in the advisory community and to VC and growth capital investors: nominate your transactions and celebrate your projects.
