Matei Dumitrescu, angel investor: “Do not work for somebody else. Work hard for yourself, create, improve, innovate”

The documentary "Romanian Startups: Roaring Tigers of Europe", made by the start-up.ro team, spans across 33 years of history, from the first entrepreneurs in the transitional years to the initial technology company transactions that brought Romania into the international spotlight.

Romanian Startups: Roaring Tigers of Europe - The Extended Series will present the people who built the Romanian ecosystem and who discussed with the VideoCorp and start-up.ro team for this documentary. In this series you will find the extensive interviews and find out the stories of those who built entrepreneurship in Romania.

Beginning with Matei’s early career ambitions post-high school—focused on self-driven entrepreneurship rather than traditional employment—out story traces his journey through starting businesses, getting involved with startups, angel investing, and developing acceleration programs.

Key moments include his first exposure to startups around 2013, the founding of Romania’s first co-working space, and his active role in TechAngels, a pioneering angel investment group.

Nowadays, in addition to being an angel investor and having built programs for founders under the umbrella of the Institute of Excellence in Entrepreneurship (idEA), Matei Dumitrescu is also a Venture Partner (and LP) for Romania for Croatian venture capital fund Fil Rouge Capital (FRC).

Throughout our interview Matei underlined the need for patience, collaboration, and responsible investment partnerships. And, of course, some characteristics of a successful entrepreneur: problem-solving ability, relentless work ethic, willingness to fail and learn fast, and strong interpersonal skills.

“An entrepreneur is someone who identifies real problems and finds solutions for those problems; they have to work relentlessly, learn fast, fail cheaply, and collaborate empathetically.” 

• The Romanian startup ecosystem’s spark began around 2013 with the convergence of tech exposure and entrepreneurial spirit.
• Angel investing in Romania started small but evolved into professional venture capital with structured, staged investments.
• Romania’s first co-working space and acceleration programs were key milestones in fostering community and startup growth.
• Preparation and education remain major challenges for Romanian entrepreneurs, limiting their ability to secure investments and scale effectively.
• Romanian startups have gained international exposure through programs like Investment Ready and connections to the European Innovation Council.
• Investor-startup relationships require patience, trust-building, and mutual understanding to flourish.
• The future of Romania’s ecosystem depends on continued maturation, collaboration, and transforming entrepreneurial enthusiasm into responsible business practices.

• Our startup ecosystem origins are rooted in tech and global exposure: The Romanian ecosystem’s formation was catalyzed by a wave of tech professionals familiar with global giants like Google and Microsoft. Their exposure to cutting-edge technologies like AI and machine learning, combined with entrepreneurial drive, created fertile ground for startups. This underscores how global connectivity and technological literacy can accelerate local ecosystem development.
• Evolution from angel investing to venture capital - growing maturity: Initially, angel investments in Romania were informal and relatively large, without staged financing. Over time, the approach became more professionalized, with structured rounds, milestones, and syndication. This shift is critical because it brings discipline, risk management, and scalability to early-stage investing, which is essential for ecosystem sustainability.

• Community spaces and networks were ecosystem catalysts: The establishment of Open Connect and Connect Hub, Romania’s first co-working spaces, provided physical and social infrastructure for entrepreneurs to meet, collaborate, and grow. This highlights the importance of creating shared spaces where knowledge exchange and networking can thrive, fueling innovation and collective momentum.
• Preparation and realism are essential for startup success: Matei emphasized that many Romanian founders suffer from a lack of preparation—whether in understanding customer needs, business fundamentals, or the realities of fundraising. The tendency to chase “overnight success” or emulate Western startup hype without grounding in local realities results in avoidable failures. This insight stresses the value of acceleration programs like Common Accel that focus on practical readiness.

“If you are prepared, you can learn a lot from failures. You can fail and come back more powerful and even better prepared. If you’re not, you just lose”.

• Investor-startup dynamics require trust and patience: The ecosystem’s investment culture is still developing trust. Investors often hesitate due to underprepared startups, while startups may misunderstand investor expectations. Emphasizing the relationship-building aspect—as akin to a marriage—suggests that long-term commitment and mentorship are as important as capital. This cultural shift could improve deal flow quality and ecosystem resilience.
• Entrepreneurship is defined by problem-solving, resilience, and collaboration: Matei Dumitrescu’s definition of an entrepreneur transcends technical skill. Successful founders must identify real problems, commit fully, embrace failure as learning, and foster teamwork and client relationships. This holistic view reinforces that startups are human-centered ventures requiring emotional intelligence alongside innovation.
• Future outlook: Romania as a regional startup hub: With persistent effort, Romania has the potential to become a central startup hub in Eastern Europe. Achieving this requires scaling investment, nurturing talent, improving startup readiness, and fostering stronger investor-founder relationships. Matei’s optimism suggests that the ecosystem’s trajectory is positive but demands sustained commitment.

Roaring Tigers of Europe is a production by start-up.ro and Videocorp, part of the Romanian publishing company InternetCorp, active for almost 20 years on the market. The documentary was made with the support of partners BCR, Orange, and 2Performant. Community partners included Guran Consulting Global, How to Web, Launch, Impact Hub Bucharest, Flaviu Simihaian, Rubik Hub, SoftServe, and the Romanian-American University.