The UK’s most active venture capital firms have been revealed after another impressive year for deals.
In total, there were 2,722 equity rounds in 2022 – down 7 per cent on 2021 but higher than years prior. Venture capital and private equity accounted for 1,329 of these.
It was a record-breaking year of fundraising in 2021, which saw over £29.5bn raised by UK businesses. Last year looked on course to replicate that number with more than £14.7bn raised in the first half of last year.
However, that momentum started to dip as rising interest rates, high inflation, the conflict in Ukraine and global recession concerns resulted in investors being more cautious with their cash.
According to a report by KPMG, over £3bn was raised in the final quarter of the year – the lowest level of quarterly investment since the second quarter of 2020.
The total investment total into UK start-ups and scale-ups in 2022 was 16 per cent down on 2021 but still high in relative terms.
London reaped most of the rewards. Companies based in the capital saw 69 per cent of the investment and retained its reputation as the UK’s venture capital hotspot.
The research conducted by Beauhurst found SFC Capital to be the most active venture capital investor, contributing in 99 deals in 2022.
The Cheshire-based VC invests in start-ups from all sectors at seed to Series A stage, typically investing between £100,000 and £300,000 through their EIS and SEIS funds.
Access EIS, managed by Syndicate Room, came second in the list, completing 65 deals in 2022. The Cambridge-based firm is sector agnostic and invests at seed to Series B stage.
The rest of the top five is made up by Octopus Ventures with 54 deals, BGF Growth Capital on 47 and seed fund Ascension on 34.
See also: BGF raises £80m in extra funds through Coutts
The top 10 active venture capital firms are below:
- SFC Capital
- Access EIS by Syndicate Room
- Octopus Ventures
- BGF Growth Capital
- Ascension
- Fuel Ventures
- Seedcamp
- LocalGlobe
- Par Equity
- Carry Back EIS Fund
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