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Paulo Andrez is a Portuguese businessman, investor, and author. From 2012 to 2014, he was the president of the European Business Angels Network (EBAN) and was later appointed President Emeritus. Andrez is the author of the bestselling book Zero Risk Startup. He also co-organised the first World Business Angels Congress in Beijing in 2009.
Paulo Andrez was born in Lisbon, Portugal. [1] He earned an Informatics Engineering degree in 1992 and an MBA in 2000, both from Nova University Lisbon. [2]
At age 18, while a university student, he started a company that sold construction and gardening materials into the United Kingdom. He later co-founded a computer training business and a company that supplied IT personnel to banks and insurance firms. This latter enterprise became part of Novabase, a Portuguese IT services company that went public on Euronext in July 2000 with Andrez as part of its leadership team and core shareholder. [3]
After the Novabase IPO in 2000, Andrez transitioned from company operations to angel investing, selling his stake in Novabase in 2006. [4] In 2007, he co-founded DNA Cascais, a business incubator, in partnership with the Cascais municipal government. He was also involved in the creation of the National Federation of Business Angels Associations (FNABA) in Portugal and served on its board. [3]
In 2012, Andrez was elected President of EBAN, serving a two-year term. [5] He contributed to the establishment of the Portuguese government’s first Business Angels Co-Investment Fund in 2011 and a tax incentive for angel investments in 2010. [3]
In 2024, Andrez authored the book Zero Risk Startup, published by Forbes , which became a best-seller in several countries. [6] [7]
Andrez is also a frequent speaker at international entrepreneurship conferences such as SXSW, TechArena, and TechSauce. [8] [9] [10]
In 2012, Andrez received the Best European Angel Investment prize for his investment in United Resins. [5] Upon completing his term as EBAN president in 2014, he was named President Emeritus of the organization. [11]