The Top 13 VC Firms In UK [2024]

Updated: January 20th, 2022

Are you looking for a VC firm for a London-based startup?

London is dominated by FinTech industry and associated professional services.

According to a 2019 report, London is home to 24,020 businesses with 99% of those SMEs. Moreover, the FinTech industry of London paid £76bn in tax in 2020, which is equivalent to 10.1% of the total tax contribution to the UK.

London is supportive of small and growing enterprises, which makes the country a tempting prospect for entrepreneurs. According to a report, in 2016, 205,352 new businesses were registered in London

There are a number of successful venture capital firms in London, and we've curated a list of the best local firms in the area. Additionally, we provide you with:

  • Investment size
  • Funding stages
  • Typical industries the firm works with
  • Well known companies the VC firm has invested in

Here's the list:

1. Seedcamp

  • Location: London
  • Industries: Technology
  • Investment Range: £200K - £750K
  • Stage: Pre-Seed and Seed-Stage
  • Companies invested in: Revolut, Sorare, Hopin, Wefox Group, Skew, Maze, Harbr, Primer, Wise.
  • No. of Investments made : 299
  • No. of Portfolio Exits : 48

Seedcamp invests in pre-seed and seed-stage companies, providing financial and human capital to help startups compete effectively.

The venture capitalist leads the pre-seed round with an investment of between £200K - £750K in exchange for an ownership stake between 6-7%. For seed-stage investments.

The VC firm is sector agnostic and focuses on backing world-class founders creating valuable, technology-focused businesses for sufficiently large addressable markets.

Learn more about Seedcamp ➜

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2. Picus Capital

  • Location: London, United Kingdom
  • Industries: Real Estate, Fintech, Insurtech
  • Investment Range: $4 Million - $75 Million
  • Stage: Pre-Seed, Seed & Series A
  • Companies invested in: Billie, Home24, Alma, Kin

Picus Capital invests in early-stage technology ventures that focus on Real Estate, Finance & Insurance, Human Resources, Renewable Energy, Mobility, E-Commerce and Health.

They invest in pre-seed, seed, and Series A companies.

Picus takes a very long-term investment approach and invest a good amount throughout the cycle. They have invested in over 70 companies to date.

Learn more about Picus Capital ➜

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3. Maven Capital Partners

  • Location: Birmingham, Durham, Bristol, Edinburgh, Manchester, London, Newcastle, Nottingham, Reading
  • Industries: Sector Agnostic
  • Investment Range: $100K - $20 million
  • Stage: Seed Stage
  • Companies invested in: Access Systems, Adimo, Airtime Rewards, Air tube Technologies, Atlantic Foods, Aero Commerce, Attraction World, BioAscent, BioRelate, Atterley.

Maven Capital Partners is leading private equity and property manager seeking to invest in ambitious, entrepreneurial management teams, with the goal of accelerating business growth.

The VC firm backs firms that have shown high-growth potential, providing capital investments in the range of $100K - $20 million. The VC firm enables investors to access attractive, highly curated private equity and commercial real estate transactions.

Learn more about Maven Capital Partners ➜

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4. Octopus Ventures

  • Location: London, New York
  • Industries: Fintech, Health, Deep Tech, Consumer, B2B Software.
  • Investment Range: $1 Million -$10 Million
  • Stage: Seed-Stage, Series B
  • Companies invested in: Secret escapes, Ibex, Ultrasoc, Zynstra, SwiftKey, WaveOptics, AudioTelligence, Memrise.
  • No. of Investments made : 335
  • No. of Portfolio Exits : 46

Octopus Ventures focuses on health, fintech, deep tech, consumer, and B2B software companies.

Apart from financial support, the venture capitalist commits time and energy to see that the companies they have invested in excel. Octopus Ventures invests in seed-stage and Series B companies that have shown the maximum potential for growth, innovation, and impact.

Typical investment starts from $1 Million for Seed to $10 Million for Series B

Learn more about Octopus Ventures ➜

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5. Index Ventures

  • Location: Australia, London, San Francisco, Geneva
  • Industries: All Sectors
  • Investment Range: $100K - $1 Million
  • Stage: All Stages
  • Companies invested in: Dropbox,Roblox, ArthurAI, Etsy, Elastic, Adyen, Figma, glossier, Datadog, Trustpilot, Squarespace.
  • No. of Investments made : 1033
  • No. of Portfolio Exits: 216

Index Ventures works with entrepreneurs and their companies at every stage, and across every sector.

The VC firm will often invest between $100K and $2Million as a pre-venture investment in seed-stage companies. Investments at a later Stage depend on the business potential.

Learn more about Index Ventures ➜

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6. Balderton Capital

  • Location: London
  • Industries: Technology
  • Investment Range: $1 Million - $20 Million
  • Stage: Seed Stage and Growth Stage
  • Companies invested in: Adludio, Aircall, 3D Hubs, Andjaro, Arive, Bebo, Axitec, Betfair, Big fish Games.
  • No. of Investments made : 393
  • No. of Portfolio Exits: 71

Balderton Capital supports technology-focused companies at both the early-stage and growth stages. Balderton invested in companies that provide software solutions, communications, security, mobile computing, and consumer services. The VC firm remains committed to sharing its expertise with founders and entrepreneurs from early stage to exit.

The Balderton team comprises legal talent, finance, and marketing experts who offer advice to ensure expert service.

Learn more about Balderton Capital ➜

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7. SFC Capital

  • Location: London
  • Industries: Food & Drink, Life Sciences, Media & Entertainment, Mobile & Online Solutions.
  • Investment Range: $100k - $300k
  • Stage: Seed Stage
  • Companies invested in: Onfido, Cognism, Humanising Autonomy,Transcend Packaging, Bean, ScreenCloud.
  • No. of Investments made : 377

SFC Capital focuses on early-stage firms within the sector of food & drink, life sciences, media 7 entertainment, online solutions, services, manufacturing, and science.

The VC firm is keen on investing in firms that combine the right entrepreneurial mindset to build successful companies that will deliver significant returns to investors and ensure a positive impact on the world.

SFC typically invests anywhere between $100k to $300k at the primary stage.

Learn more about SFC Capital ➜

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8. Anthemis Group

  • Location: London
  • Industries: Fintech, Insurtech
  • Investment Range: Not disclosed
  • Stage: Seed Stage
  • Companies invested in: Tide, Timetric, Tremor, TreasurySpring, Unmind, TrueLayer, Wayhome, Wollit, ZyFin, YuLife, Xapix.

Anthemis invests in technology-driven companies that focus on Fintech, Insurtech, and those that work towards changing the financial system.

The VC firm provides strategic and investment advice for financial services and technology companies, helping them to meet the demands of 21st Century consumers and businesses. Anthemis brings deep know-how and capabilities, ensuring the companies excel.

Learn more about Anthemis Group ➜

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9. Amadeus Capital Partners

  • Location: London, United Kingdom
  • Industries: AI & machine learning, SaaS, fintech,
  • Investment Range: Not disclosed
  • Stage: Seed and above
  • Companies invested in: Xmos, Quibim, Pimloc, Healx

Amadeus Capital Partners has invested in more than 180 companies, and they help entrepreneurs build great companies, from early-stage to global growth.

They invest in AI & machine learning, online consumer services, cyber security, digital health and medical technology, digital media, enterprise SaaS, fintech, regtech, and insurance.

Amadeus funds startups from London, Cambridge, Oxford, San Francisco, and São Paulo in order to help them scale up and reach new heights.

Learn more about Amadeus Capital Partners ➜

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10. LocalGlobe

  • Location: London
  • Industries: Technology
  • Investment Range: Not Disclosed.
  • Stage: Seed Stage
  • Companies invested in: Equity Bee, Plum Guide, Goodlord, Empathy, Eden Life, Kano, Tide, Otta, Cleo, Wise.

Local Globe focuses on early-stage technology startups in SaaS and Artificial Intelligence. The VC firm offers financial assistance, and other technical expertise required to propel startups forward.

Learn more about LocalGlobe ➜

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11. Par Equity

  • Location: London
  • Industries: Fintech, cleantech, media
  • Investment Range: Not disclosed
  • Stage: Seed & Series A
  • Companies invested in: DeltaDNA, Artus, Current

Par Equity is investing across Northern England, Northern Ireland, and Scotland business focusing on Fintech, cleantech, media, and communications.

They invest in seed and series A with outstanding growth potential and clear global application. Their notable clients include Swipii, miiCard, Greengage Lighting.

Learn more about Par Equity ➜

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12. Passion Capital

  • Location: London
  • Industries: Technology
  • Investment Range: Not Disclosed.
  • Stage: Seed Stage
  • Companies invested in: Adzuna, Mendeley, Bonfire, Smarkets, Picklive, Vicampo, Wedo, Pusher, Wine In Black, DueDil, Lulu, Eyeem, Mixlr, Tripbirds, Vinetrade, Loopcam.

Passion Capital invests in early-stage technology-focused startups.

The venture capitalist remains committed to fostering an ecosystem of technology and believes that the critical differentiator and key asset of a successful business is the passion and ability of its founders.

Learn more about Passion Capital ➜

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13. Point Nine Capital

  • Location: Berlin, Germany
  • Industries: Marketing, Technology, FinTech, BioTech, Financial Services
  • Investment Range: $1 Million - $5 Million
  • Stage: Seed-Stage
  • Companies invested in: CallDesk, Eatfirst, Brainly, HappyCo, LIFT, Airstoc

Point Nine is a Berlin-based venture firm exclusively dedicated to supporting early-stage Technology investments, mostly in the Internet area, and principally related to early stages to SaaS, and digital marketplaces.

They also invest in Software development, mobile data, and telecommunications.

Learn more about Point Nine Capital ➜

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meet the author
Pat Walls

I'm Pat Walls and I created Starter Story - a website dedicated to helping people start businesses. We interview entrepreneurs from around the world about how they started and grew their businesses.