Duco Sickinghe

TLDR

Duco Sickinghe is the Founding and Managing Partner of Fortino Capital, having previously turned Telenet from near-bankruptcy into a profitable Unicorn as its CEO, and worked with Steve Jobs at NeXT Computer early in his career.

Overview

Duco Sickinghe's career spans from Silicon Valley to Belgian boardrooms. Early in his professional life, he worked at NeXT Computer during the period Steve Jobs ran the company, giving him direct exposure to the product culture that would later influence Apple's resurgence.

He served as CEO of Telenet for an extended period, during which he transformed the cable operator from near-bankruptcy into a consistently profitable company. He was voted Best Belgian Listed CEO three times during his tenure. The operational credibility from this role underpins the operational value-add positioning of Fortino Capital.

In 2013, Duco co-founded Fortino Capital, a Ghent-based growth equity fund focused on B2B software companies. Fortino has become one of Belgium's most respected growth-stage investors, with a portfolio that spans Flemish and international SaaS companies.

Notes

Key node connecting the Telenet/telecom establishment with the Flemish B2B software investor ecosystem. Fortino's operational model is distinctive in Belgian VC.