London-based VC firm Balderton Capital has announced two new funds that will seek to back technology firms across the continent.
The two funds, Early Stage Fund IX and Growth Fund II, have a combined cache of $1.3bn to invest in the sector. Some $615m of this will be in the Early Stage Fund IX, with the remaining $685m earmarked for Growth Fund II. The firm gave little indication, other than a tech focus, for what the two funds would concentrate on. However, it did say it has seen ‘strong investor demand’ for the new offerings.
Bernard Liautaud, managing partner at Balderton, said: “At Balderton, we believe the best way to change the world is to build a business – and that many of these world-changing businesses will be built in Europe. As a firm, our mission is simple: to be the partner of choice to the founders starting and growing those European technology companies. These new funds put us in a position to do just that.”
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This news from Balderton Capital comes in the same week that financial services giant KPMG said the money flowing towards AI firms was driving global VC investment. The German office of the firm said global VC capital investment rose to a five-quarter high in the second quarter of 2024, from $75.3bn in the first quarter to $94.3bn.
These findings were demonstrated in KPMG’s latest Venture Pulse 2024. The firm said this development is mainly due to very large investments of over $1bn, more than half of which were made in AI.
The firm wrote: “Venture capitalists are also investing heavily in the technology in Europe. Investments rose from $13.9bn in the first quarter of 2024 to $17.8bn in the second quarter. On the one hand, investors are interested in companies that develop basic AI technologies. On the other hand, companies that use AI to improve business models, for example to better monitor customer experience or simplify product development, are also receiving financial support.”
It added: “The most significant AI investments were made in start-ups that develop large language models and in companies that want to use artificial intelligence for specific industries or in certain functions. These include healthcare, biotechnology and supply chain logistics. Investors are also continuing to invest in alternative energies and sustainable technologies.”
According to KPMG, Germany is among the top 10 European countries for VC investment, although these remained virtually unchanged at $2.2bn in the second quarter of 2024. These investors were also particularly interested in fintech companies, while interest in cryptocurrencies continued to decline compared to the previous quarter.
See also: Why the tech giants are facing an ‘existential event’
