From Software Agency to Nine-Figure Exit: The SevDesk Story with Co-founder Fabian Silberer

About this episode

Founded in 2013 as a software agency, SevDesk evolved over twelve years into one of Germany's leading accounting software companies with over 130,000 customers and solid double-digit million revenue. Recently, the company was sold to Cegit for a nine-figure sum, marking the first major German startup exit of 2025.

Co-founder Fabian Silberer provides deep insights into the decision-making process behind the sale and the remarkable journey from small software shop to successful SaaS company.

From Contract Work to Product

The foundation for SevDesk wasn't laid through a groundbreaking idea, but developed organically from a software agency's contract work. A specific customer project sparked the vision for accounting software that would later become the core product.

The first paying customer marked a "magical moment" for the founders – proof that they had found genuine product-market fit. From that point forward, continuous customer feedback shaped product development and helped transform SevDesk into the solution that small and medium enterprises truly needed.

Bootstrapping as Foundation

In the early years, SevDesk financed itself primarily through own funds and revenue from service contracts. This bootstrapping phase forced the team toward profitable growth and clear focus on customer needs – an experience that proved valuable for later scaling.

However, the path wasn't always straightforward: their first funding round initially failed, forcing the founders to find alternative routes and rethink their strategy.

Scaling and Organizational Growth

Growing from two founders to hundreds of employees brought new challenges. Particularly in recruitment and organizational scaling, the team went through important learning curves. The Offenburg location proved to be a surprising advantage – despite concerns about finding talent there, they succeeded in building and developing a strong team.

Fabian speaks openly about mistakes made along the way and the learnings that emerged. Internal growth and talent development became critical success factors.

The 50 Million Euro Funding Round of 2021

The major funding round of 50 million euros in 2021 came during a time of cheap money and brought both blessing and curse. While the capital enabled important growth initiatives, it also created new pressure and expectations.

Fabian shares his experiences with secondaries and provides concrete recommendations for other founders facing similar decisions.

CEO Stress and Personal Development

The twelve-year journey as CEO was marked by enormous stress and pressure. Fabian speaks honestly about the psychological challenges of the founder role and why he no longer sees himself as a manager. This self-awareness played an important role in the decision to step down from his CEO position.

The Exit: Timing and Strategic Considerations

The decision to sell SevDesk in 2025 was based on several strategic considerations. The timing was deliberately chosen: future topics like e-invoicing and AI integration require massive investments and expertise that can be better realized as part of a larger company.

The sales process itself took several months and required intensive preparation and negotiations. Fabian provides insights into the complexity of such an exit and the factors that influenced the final pricing.

Learnings for Other Founders

From twelve years of entrepreneurship, Fabian takes away several important insights:

• –Product-market fit is fundamental – the first paying customer shows whether you're on the right track
• –Bootstrapping creates a solid foundation and forces profitable thinking
• –Organizational scaling is one of the biggest challenges in growth
• –The right timing for an exit requires strategic thinking about the industry's future
• –Recognizing personal limits is crucial for long-term success

The SevDesk story demonstrates that sustainable growth and a successful exit are possible when you consistently focus on customer needs and remain willing to learn from mistakes.