Momentum stalled across Europe in Q3, as equity funding fell by 34% to €10.1bn following a strong Q2 (€15.4bn), according to Sifted’s Q3 report.
Sifted tracked 2,460 investors that made at least one investment into a European startup in Q3; 404 of them made at least two and 40 made at least five.
Find out which investors were the most active, segmented by private, growth and late-stage and public investors below. Deal counts reflect publicly announced (some remain in stealth) equity funding rounds and those submitted to Sifted. Investors were contacted to verify their deal counts.
Private investors (all stages)
1/ Mercia Ventures
Q3 deal count: 22
2024 YTD count: 39
HQ: UK
Notable deals:
- £8m Series A (lead) for Promethean Particles, advanced materials for carbon capture
- $10m Series A (lead) for CultureAI, organisational cybersecurity platform
2/ Antler
Q3 deal count: 20
2024 YTD count: 103
HQ: Singapore (global)
Notable deals:
- €4m seed for Steep, data analytics platform
- €4m seed for QMil, quantum computing startup
3/ High-Tech Gründerfonds
Q3 deal count: 16
2024 YTD count: 52
HQ: Germany
Notable deals:
- €2.4m seed (lead) for Symphera, robotic surgery
- €2.2m seed (lead) for BIOVOX, sustainable bioplastics for medical applications
4/ SFC Capital
Q3 deal count: 14
2024 YTD count: 92
HQ: UK
Notable deals:
- £3.4m Series A for 4D Medicine, biomaterials for 3D printed implants and surgical devices
- £1.5m for Quin AI, customer behaviour prediction platform for ecommerce brands
5/ Y Combinator
Q3 deal count: 13
2024 YTD count: 51
HQ: US
Notable deals:
- $30m Series B for Raycast, allows users to interact with different productivity tools
- $25m Series A for Leya, AI legaltech startup
6/ imec
Q3 deal count: 11
2024 YTD count: 17
HQ: Belgium
Notable deals:
- €2.5m (lead) for Veoware, satellite motion control enhancement
- €1.9m for Uman, AI sales agent
7/ EQT
Q3 deal count: 10
2024 YTD count:
HQ: Sweden
Notable deals:
- €93m Series A (lead) for Pantera, radioisotope producer for cancer treatment discovery
- €45m for Evroc, sustainable data centres
8/ Balderton Capital
Q3 deal count: 8
2024 YTD count: 15
HQ: UK
Notable deals:
- €18.4m Series B (lead) for Checkly, code-first synthetic monitoring platform for developers
- €16.1m Series A (lead) for Tilt, community shopping app
=8/ Venture Kick
Q3 deal count: 8
2024 YTD count: 22
HQ: Switzerland
Notable deals:
- €1m pre-seed for Regenosca, bio-implant creator
- €156k (lead) for Flink Robotics, industrial robots
10/ Lakestar
Q3 deal count: 7
2024 YTD count: 11
HQ: Germany
Notable deals:
- £35m Series B (lead) for Doccla, virtual ward service
- $21.5m seed for Vsim, physics-based simulation engine for robotics
=10/ Partech
Q3 deal count: 7
2024 YTD count: 15
HQ: France
Notable deals:
- €15m Series B for Exein, embedded cybersecurity for IoT devices
- $15m Series A (lead) for Retraced, fashion supplier data platform
=10/ Plug and Play
Q3 deal count: 7
2024 YTD count: 17
HQ: US (global)
Notable deals:
- €80m Series C extension for Caresyntax, provider of smart technologies for surgery
- €6.7m seed for Ucaneo, direct air capture technologies for CO2 removal
Growth and late-stage investors
1/ Sofinnova Partners
Q3 deal count: 4
2024 YTD count: 7
HQ: France
Notable deals:
- $100m Series C for Asceneuron, oral therapeutics for neurodegenerative disorders
- $52m Series B (lead) for Genespire, therapies for those affected by genetic diseases
=1/ HV Capital
Q3 deal count: 4
2024 YTD count: 7
HQ: Germany
Notable deals:
- €62.8m Series B (lead) for Marvel Fusion, nuclear fusion
- €32m Series B for One Data (lead), AI-powered data product builder
=1/ Accel
Q3 deal count: 4
2024 YTD count: 8
HQ: US
Notable deals:
- €450m Series C for Helsing, develops AI software for use on the battlefield
- $52m for Carwow, online car marketplace
=1/ Balderton Capital
Q3 deal count: 4
2024 YTD count: 6
HQ: UK
Notable deals:
- $47m Series C for Healx, AI-driven drug discovery
- €29.7m for Attio, CRM software provider
5/ Coatue
Q3 deal count: 3
2024 YTD count: 5
HQ: US
Notable deals:
- €173m Series F for Alan, digital health insurtech
- $30m Series B for Raycast, allows users to interact with different productivity tools
=5/ EQT
Q3 deal count: 3
2024 YTD count: 13
HQ: Sweden
Notable deals:
- $100m Series C for Asceneuron, oral therapeutics for neurodegenerative disorders
- €55.2m Series B for Formo, fermentation startup creating alternative dairy products
=5/ Novo Holdings
Q3 deal count: 11
2024 YTD count: 17
HQ: Denmark
Notable deals:
- $100m Series C (lead) for Asceneuron, oral therapeutics for neurodegenerative disorders
- $100m for F2G, therapies for rare fungal infections
=5/ Santander
Q3 deal count: 3
2024 YTD count: 7
HQ: Spain
Notable deals:
- €15m Series B for Soil Capital, regenerative agriculture specialist
- €10.5m Series B (lead) for Enedia, neighbourhood grid intelligence
=5/ Wellington Partners
Q3 deal count: 3
2024 YTD count: 5
HQ: UK
Notable deals:
- €60m Series B for Confo Therapeutics, CPCR (G protein-coupled receptors) drug discovery
- €44m Series B for CorFlow Therapeutics, heart attack diagnosis and treatment
Public investors (all stages)
1/ Bpifrance
Q3 deal count: 26
2024 YTD count: 84
HQ: France
Notable deals:
- $35m Series B (lead) for Calyxia, advanced, customisable biodegradable microcapsules
- $29m Series B (lead) Micropep Technologies, micropeptide sequence discovery platform
2/ European Innovation Council
Q3 deal count: 17
2024 YTD count: 62
HQ: Belgium (Europe)
Notable deals:
- €56m Series A for Reverion, reversible carbon-negative power plants
- £12.5m (lead) for Biosourcing, sustainable biotherapeutics platform
3/ CDP Venture Capital
Q3 deal count: 13
2024 YTD count: 34
HQ: Italy
Notable deals:
- €50m Series C extension for D-Orbit, space logistics and transportation
- €18m for hlpy, vehicle and roadside assistance
4/ Scottish Enterprise
Q3 deal count: 9
2024 YTD count: 27
HQ: UK
Notable deals:
- £14m for MiAlgae, sustainable marine omega-3 product
- £11m Series A for Aveni, financial services productivity platform
5/ Export and Investment Fund of Denmark
Q3 deal count: 6
2024 YTD count: 22
HQ: Denmark
Notable deals:
- $43m Series A for Again, produces carbon-negative materials
- €17.4m Series A for Cerebriu, AI for brain MRI scanning
8/ British Business Bank
Q3 deal count: 5
2024 YTD count: 17
HQ: UK
Notable deals:
- £8m Series A for Promethean Particles, nanomaterial manufacturing
- €2.5m Series A (lead) for Warehow, fashion ecommerce fulfilment
=8/ Development Bank of Wales
Q3 deal count: 5
2024 YTD count: 12
HQ: UK
Notable deals:
- £1.8m funding for Argonaute RNA, advancing RNA interference therapies
- £740k funding for Optimise AI, optimises energy for buildings
=8/ European Investment Bank
Q3 deal count: 5
2024 YTD count: 7
HQ: Belgium (Europe)
Notable deals:
- €40m (lead) for Stark Future, electric motorcycles dealer
- €11m Series A for Treble Technologies, sound simulation and spatial audio technology
10/ CDTI
Q3 deal count: 4
2024 YTD count: 22
HQ: Spain
Notable deals:
- Trovant Technology, a biomethane producer
- ALLOX, biotech drug discovery of new protein functions
=10/ Enterprise Ireland
Q3 deal count: 4
2024 YTD count: 16
HQ: UK
Notable deals:
- $16m for CroíValve, medical equipment manufacturer
- €540k pre-seed (lead) for Skippio, event planning & management
