News & Analysis

driven by the PitchBook Platform
Close-up Of Unemployed Businessperson Carrying Cardboard Box

Featured image by RUNSTUDIO/Getty Images

VC Fundraising

Number of active VCs in Europe falls more than 50%

The number of active VC investors in Europe has dropped as dealmaking and fundraising remain sluggish.

The number of active investors in Europe’s venture capital ecosystem has shrunk by over half as the industry struggles to rebound.

PitchBook data shows that in the past year just 906 European VC investors have made two or more deals globally—less than half of the 1,955 investors recorded in 2023.

Since VC dealmaking started to decline in 2022, many firms have eschewed new investments in favor of supporting existing portfolio companies. While the pace of dealmaking is expected to rebound this year, the data suggests that some investors are still on hold.

Fundraising for European VC firms has also been particularly challenging over the past few years. In 2023, VC fund count dropped 50.7% compared to the year before, according to PitchBook’s Q1 2024 European Venture Report, while capital raised declined 38% over the same period. In the first three months of 2024, some €4.6 billion (about $5 billion) was raised by the region’s VC vehicles which would—should that pace continue through the year—put the annual total just below last year’s.

With fewer LPs to support VC funds, more investors are choosing not to fundraise. PitchBook’s H1 2024 VC Tech Survey showed that 13% of global venture GPs aren’t planning to raise another fund, up from 6% over the same period in 2023. Additionally, 27% of respondents said that their fundraising plans have been delayed.

Some investors have shut down or pulled out of European VC entirely. Last year, French energy group TotalEnergies closed its climate-focused corporate venture arm, while Coatue shut down its European venture office in January.

There have also been a handful of acquisitions of VC firms. In March, Molten Ventures completed its purchase of London-based Forward Partners for a reported £41.4 million (about $52.7 million). Late last year, US-based General Catalyst announced that it was joining forces with Berlin’s La Famiglia.

Decreasing numbers of active investors is not just limited to Europe. In the US, the total number of active firms declined by 38% in the first three quarters of 2023 compared to the same period the year prior.

In December, Boston-based OpenView decided to wind down and, just a month later, early-stage investor Countdown Capital announced that it would close its doors by the end of March.

Featured image by RUNSTUDIO/Getty Images

Learn more about our editorial standards.

  • leah-hodgson-photo.jpg
    About Leah Hodgson
    Leah Hodgson is a London-based senior reporter for PitchBook, covering the venture capital ecosystem across Europe and the Middle East. Leah, who joined PitchBook in 2018, graduated from the University of Surrey with a BA in international politics with French. She has previously been a radio reporter in France. She later turned to financial journalism, covering the wealth management industry.
Join the more than 2 million industry professionals who get our daily newsletter!

    I agree to PitchBook’s privacy policy