10 Most Active Venture Capital Firms in London
London has been leading the way in European venture capital (VC) funding and entrepreneurship for many years now, even giving Silicon Valley a run for its money. Venture capital firms have pumped over £34.3b into the city’s startup ecosystem since 2011, from high-risk, pre-seed companies to more established ventures.
Here, we’ve ranked the 10 most active venture capital funds in the capital, between 2011 and 2024, by number of investments made into London-based companies. We’ve also analysed the state of investment in the capital in 2024, analysing which industries are seeing an uptick in investment activity.
Carry on reading for full profiles on each fund, including investment criteria and some of the fast-growing businesses they’ve backed.
What are venture capital funds?
Venture capitalists are the most common equity investors in high-growth companies, ahead of both crowdfunding platforms and angel investors. VCs specialise in buying shares in and growing the valuations of private companies. But how does venture capital investment differ from other forms of startup funding? Unlike other institutional investors, many venture capitalists have been on the other side of the table, as founders of their own startups, so can offer their expertise and longer-term support, alongside growth finance.
Venture capital funds also typically invest in riskier portfolios than private equity and hedge funds, although each fund will have its own set of criteria outlining the types of investment opportunities considered. These decisions are made by fund managers (General Partners or GPs), whilst financial backing usually comes from large corporate investors or high-net-worth individuals (Limited Partners or LPs).
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Venture capital in London’s startup ecosystem
Private equity and venture capital firms are very active investors in London startups and scaleups. Since 2011, 27% of equity deals secured by high-growth UK companies and backed by PE or VC firms have gone to businesses based in London.
But that proportion is increasing, standing at 48% in 2023 as outlined in our latest edition of The Deal. Our data indicates that 509 funds have backed 3,366 equity investments in the region, providing growth capital to 3,017 high-growth businesses in London.
Unsurprisingly, venture capital investment in London predominantly goes to early-stage startups. Of the PE/VC funding rounds secured by high-growth companies in the capital, 70% have gone to either seed or venture-stage businesses. In comparison, 21% of PE/VC investment has been raised by companies at the growth stage, and 6% by those at the established stage.
Aside from a marginal drop in 2018, VC activity in London has grown significantly over the past decade, from just 39 deals in 2012 to 634 in 2022. And despite—or potentially because of—the COVID-19 pandemic, we saw particularly strong growth in venture capital investment between 2020 and 2021, with a 42% rise in deal numbers.
This article looks at the most active venture capital funds in London, regardless of sector. If you want to narrow down these VCs even further, or by activity in other regions, then you can do so on the Beauhurst platform.
Whether you work in corporate finance and are looking to secure venture funding for your clients, or you’re an angel or fund seeking venture capitalists to co-invest with, Beauhurst data can indicate the best VC firms for you to approach and partner with.
London’s venture capital activity in 2024
As of September 2024, 26.72% of London-based private equity and venture capital funds have taken part in a deal. This includes the £340m Monzo megadeal in March, which featured Passion Capital, amongst a range of international investors.
Other notable deals involving London VCs include PolyAi’s £39.4m raise, with involvement from DN Capital and Passion Capital, and more recently, the £55.1m investment in asset management software developer, FINBOURNE. Westminster-based Highland Europe participated in this round.
Looking at industries, application software has seen the biggest year-on-year drop in the number of equity deals — down 33% from 303 in 2023, to 203 in 2024. This represents a broader trend of the 32.2% downturn in average investment by London VCs. In spite of this, application software still features in eight of the 10 biggest deals verified by Beauhurst in 2024 so far.
Most active venture capital firms in London 2011–2024
Listed here are London’s most active* venture capital firms from 2011 through to 2024. We’ve ranked these private equity and venture capital funds based on the number of rounds — and the number of companies backed.
These numbers are accurate as of 16th September, 2024.
10.
Amadeus Capital Partners
Known investments:
178 rounds
88 companies
Based in Westminster, Amadeus Capital Partners is an equity fund manager that focuses on micro, small, and medium-sized businesses. It tends to invest in companies in AI and machine learning, consumer services, cyber security, digital health and medical technology, digital media, enterprise software, fintech, insurtech and regtech, semiconductors and displays, and telecoms infrastructure.
While it does not publish its investment range, it invests in companies across the world. Amadeus Capital Partners has participated in 178 fundraisings totalling £2.17b with an average fundraisings of £12.6m. The stake taken by investors in these deals averaged 30.1% at a £41m pre-money valuation.
09.
MMC Ventures
Known investments:
178 rounds
89 companies
Camden-based MMC Ventures enters our top 10 in 2024, following six rounds of investment this year totalling £57.2m. Funding companies since 2000, MMC invests predominantly in AI and data science companies operating across industries including fintech, health, security, and business software.
The fund does not publish its investment range, but Beauhurst research indicates that it typically invests between £25k and £10m in companies at the seed, venture, and growth stages of investment. The largest round of investment participated in so far has been YuLife’s £100m raise in July 2022.
08.
Passion Capital
Known investments:
184 rounds
89 companies
Passion Capital is an early-stage VC which looks to invest in digital media, software, and e-commerce companies.
The fund originally targeted an average investment size of between £150k and £200k, but it has since made a wider range of deals. With an average 25.1% stake taken and a £72.9m pre-money valuation, Passion Capital has participated in 184 rounds worth £1.48b.
First established in 2011, Passion Capital has invested in at least 56 of London’s high-growth companies. The fund’s portfolio includes Monzo, GoCardless, proptech Nested, mental wellbeing startup Spill, and insurtech unicorn Marshmallow.
07.
LocalGlobe
Known investments:
235 rounds
169 companies
Managed by Phoenix Court Group, LocalGlobe is a private equity and venture capital fund based in Camden. The most common sector it invests in is SaaS, with a particular focus on artificial intelligence.
LocalGlobe has participated in 235 fundraisings totalling £2.15b with an average fundraising of £9.26m. The stake taken by investors in these deals averaged 27% at a £34.2m pre-money valuation. Some of its previous investments include jobseekers site Adzuna, and software company Axiom.
06.
Ascension
Known investments:
236 rounds
180 companies
Ascension operates a collection of early-stage VC funds, built by exited entrepreneurs to back the next generation of technology and impact founders. With visibility of over 3k investment opportunities a year, Ascension invests through a number of funds.
This includes tax-efficient funds like Ascension EIS, Ascension SEIS, and the Ascension Life Fund, as well as its institutional funds Fair By Design (an impact investing fund that backs businesses reducing the poverty premium) and Good Food Fund (backing innovative foodtech companies that tackle childhood obesity).
Whilst Ascension doesn’t publish its investment range, Beauhurst research indicates that it typically invests between £500k and £5m. Since 2011, we’ve tracked 236 of Ascension’s investments in 123 London startups. As well as providing growth capital, the fund also offers mentoring services and access to its network of industry contacts.
05.
Balderton Capital
Known investments:
289 rounds
161 companies
Balderton Capital is focused on backing European-founded tech companies with global ambitions. Since launching over two decades ago, Balderton Capital has worked with more than 200 founders and raised over £3b to invest in their startups. The fund takes a long-term approach, typically investing in the early stages of a company’s growth, between £1m and £20m, and continuing to support them from start to exit..
Since 2011, Balderton Capital has backed 51 high-growth companies based in London. Its portfolio is impressive, with big names including Revolut, ComplyAdvantage, Depop, Citymapper, and GoCardless.
04.
Seedcamp
Known investments:
359 rounds
253 companies
Launched in 2007, Seedcamp invests in founders using technology to tackle large, global markets. The fund is focused on early-stage companies, and typically invests between £350k and £1m. Whilst it’s sector agnostic, Seedcamp most commonly backs software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies. The fund supports its portfolio companies to find product-market fit, builds out their sales and marketing functions, and makes introductions to a global network of experts.
The fund has an excellent track record, having backed several of the UK’s unicorn companies, including Revolut, Wise (formerly TransferWise), and virtual events platform Hopin. Its portfolio also includes top fintech startups Primer, Curve, and challenger bank Monese. Since 2011, Seedcamp has invested in 136 ambitious businesses in London.
03.
Octopus Ventures
Known investments:
375 rounds
231 companies
Founded in 2000 by Simon Rogerson, Christopher Hulatt, and Guy Myles, Octopus Group is a fund management company that has expanded into all kinds of areas, including energy, real estate, and wealth management. Its investments into private companies are carried out through its European venture capital arm, Octopus Ventures.
Since the fund launched in 2008, it’s primarily invested in businesses operating in the deep tech, B2B software, fintech, healthtech, biotech, consumer and climate sectors. It looks to back companies led by talented entrepreneurs who are seeking to make a significant, positive impact on the world.
Investments typically start at £100k for pre-seed rounds and the fund seeks to continue supporting its portfolio companies through to IPO. The fund also provides companies with a network of coaches and operating consultants, alongside its Venture Partners.
Since 2011, Octopus Group has backed 129 London-based companies. Big names in its portfolio include Secret Escapes, vegan meal subscription company allplants, pet insurance company Many Pets, and food waste reduction app OLIO.
02.
BGF Growth Capital
Known investments:
540 rounds
418 companies
BGF invests in SMEs across all sectors and regions of the UK and Ireland. Its average investment is around £7.81m,with an average stake of 26.1% equity share taken. BGF (formerly Business Growth Fund) has a strong success rate, with more than 100 exits by its portfolio companies..
BGF has backed at least 71 ambitious companies based in London. Alongside growth finance, the fund offers access to a global network of experts and other investors, as well as support with strengthening boards, succession planning, and exit strategies.
01.
Index Ventures
Known investments:
695 rounds
400 companies
Index Ventures has worked with numerous London unicorns, including Deliveroo, FarFetch, Funding Circle, Wise and Revolut. And an impressive number of its investee companies have also carried out successful IPOs. The fund works with founders in any sector, at any stage, but its portfolio shows a particular interest in seed and venture-stage startups in fintech, software-as-a-service (SaaS), and eHealth or healthtech.
Since 2011, the fund has backed at least 84 companies in London. Index Ventures markets itself as a people-focused, global fund that partners with entrepreneurs to turn ideas into international businesses. It currently has offices in London, Geneva, and San Francisco.
*Although the Beauhurst platform does track unannounced fundraisings, we’re only able to assign investors to a round if their participation has been announced to the press or Beauhurst directly. As such, the actual number of deals completed by these funds may be higher than stated.
The Most Active UK Venture Capital Funds
A list of the 10 most active venture capital firms, ranked by the number of deals they made in the UK startup ecosystem in 2022.
The future of venture capital funding in London
The future of venture capital funding in London has accelerated rapidly in the previous decade, marked by a dynamic startup landscape that has embraced technological advancements in industries such as cleantech and artificial intelligence. And as the capital continues to foster innovation and entrepreneurship, both private equity and venture capital firms are expected to continue playing a pivotal role in supporting the growth of emerging startups across the UK.
The rise of fintech, biotech, and sustainable technologies is likely to attract substantial investment, with London’s status as a global financial hub further enhancing its appeal to investors.
Additionally, collaborative efforts between government initiatives, corporate partnerships, and the venture capital community are anticipated to contribute to the resilience and adaptability of the London venture capital scene, ensuring its position at the forefront of the global innovation landscape.
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FAQs
There are currently 509 VC funds in London, as of 16 September, 2024.
A number of PE and VC funds use Beauhurst, including AlbionVC as well as Puma Private Equity, to find investment opportunities. Using Beauhurst, you can create Collections of companies based on a flexible set of criteria — and then import them to your CRM.
At Beauhurst, we’re always keeping on top of the latest developments in the private equity and venture capital circles. With this in mind, you can check out our full ranking of the most active VC funds across the UK on our blog.
