Top 30 Venture Capital Firms in the UK 2023 (Early-Stage)

If you’re looking for investors to fund your startup, you’re in the right place. Welcome to the curated list of top 30 most active VC firms in the UK in 2023 that invest in early-stage startups. These VC firms have a strong track record of identifying and backing promising startups in various industries, and have played a pivotal role in fuelling innovation and driving growth in the UK startup scene. Each firm has its unique investment thesis and industry expertise, making them well-equipped to identify and support startups with high growth potential in their respective sectors.

The investment size of these venture capital firms varies, with some firms focusing on smaller seed-stage investments, while others target larger Series A rounds. The typical investment size ranges from £250,000 to £10 million, depending on the firm’s strategy, stage of the startup, and industry focus.

Let’s take a closer look.

Atomico is a leading venture capital firm focused on investing in disruptive technology companies in Europe.

Industry Focus: Technology, including AI, SaaS, cybersecurity, and more.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £20 million. Notable Companies in Portfolio: Revolut , Klarna , Graphcore, and Scandit.

Number of Investments Made: Over 150 investments made so far.

Index Ventures is a global venture capital firm that backs ambitious entrepreneurs across different stages and sectors.

Industry Focus: Technology, including fintech, healthtech, consumer goods, and more.

Approximate Investment Size: From £250,000 to over £100 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Deliveroo , TransferWise, Farfetch , and Roblox.

Number of Investments Made: Over 400 investments made so far.

Accel is a leading global venture capital firm that invests in early-stage startups across various sectors.

Industry Focus: Technology, including cybersecurity, fintech, marketplaces, and more.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £10 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Facebook , Slack , Dropbox , and Hopin.

Number of Investments Made: Over 500 investments made so far.

Balderton Capital is a venture capital firm focused on investing in early-stage startups in Europe.

Industry Focus: Technology, including AI, healthtech, consumer goods, and more.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £20 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Citymapper, Revolut, Darktrace, and GoCardless.

Number of Investments: Over 200 investments made so far

LocalGlobe is a venture capital firm that supports early-stage startups in the UK.

Industry Focus: Technology, including proptech, healthtech, and more.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £1 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Zoopla , Improbable, TransferWise, and Citymapper.

Number of Investments Made: Over 100 investments made so far.

ACF Investors is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage startups in the UK.

Industry Focus: Technology, media, and telecoms.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £3 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Lumacron, Voneus, and Qstory.

Number of Investments Made: Over 10 investments made so far

Passion Capital is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage startups in the UK.

Industry Focus: Technology, including fintech, healthtech, and more.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £1 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Monzo , GoCardless, Tide, and Last.fm.

Number of Investments Made: Over 50 investments made so far.

Episode 1 is a venture capital firm that focuses on investing in early-stage technology startups in the UK.

Industry Focus: Technology, including SaaS, AI, cybersecurity, and more.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £2 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Carwow, Zoopla, and Triptease.

Number of Investments Made: Over 30 investments made so far.

83North is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage startups in the UK and Europe.

Industry Focus: Technology, including SaaS, AI, cybersecurity, and more.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £10 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Just Eat , Wolt, Mirakl, and Marqeta.

Number of Investments Made: Over 60 investments made so far.

MMC Ventures is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage startups in the UK, with a focus on technology and consumer goods companies.

Industry Focus: Technology, including SaaS, healthtech, and more.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £5 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Gousto , Interactive Investor , Bloom & Wild , and NewVoiceMedia .

Number of Investments Made: Over 100 investments made so far.

Notion Capital is a venture capital firm that invests in Europe.

Industry Focus: Technology, specifically B2B SaaS.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £10 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Tradeshift , Unbabel , Currencycloud , and Paddle .

Number of Investments Made: Over 50 investments made so far.

Forward Partners is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage startups in the UK, with a focus on consumer goods and technology companies

Industry Focus: Consumer goods and technology, including e-commerce, healthtech, and more. Approximate Investment Size: Up to £2 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Patch Plants, Appear Here, and Zopa.

Number of Investments Made: Over 40 investments made so far.

Seedcamp is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage startups companies.

Industry Focus: Technology, including SaaS, fintech, and more.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £200,000 for seed stage, up to £2 million for later stage. Notable Companies in Portfolio: TransferWise, Revolut, UiPath, and Hopin.

Number of Investments Made: Over 300 investments made so far.

Oxford Capital is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage companies in the UK.

Industry Focus: Technology, healthtech, and consumer goods.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £10 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Oxbotica, Optellum, and Navitas.

Number of Investments Made: Over 100 investments made so far.

Mosaic Ventures is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage technology startups in Europe, with a focus on companies that are transforming industries.

Industry Focus: Technology, including fintech, healthtech, and more.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £10 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Blockchain.com, UiPath, and C2FO.

Number of Investments Made: Over 40 investments made so far.

Playfair Capital is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage technology startups in the UK, with a focus on companies in the artificial intelligence and machine learning space.

Industry Focus: Technology, specifically AI and machine learning.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £1 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Mapillary, Ravelin, and CryptoFacilities.

Number of Investments Made: Over 60 investments made so far.

Beacon Capital is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage startups in the UK.

Industry Focus: Healthcare and life sciences.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £5 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Oxford BioTherapeutics, Sphere Fluidics, and Cytox.

Number of Investments Made: Over 10 investments made so far.

Fuel Ventures is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage companies in the UK.

Industry Focus: Consumer and e-commerce.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £2 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Patch Plants, Sensor Tower, and WeGift.

Number of Investments Made: Over 50 investments made so far.

Episode 1 Ventures is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage technology companies in the UK, with a focus on companies in the software, AI, and cybersecurity sectors.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £2 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Carwow, LoveCrafts, and Tractable.

Number of Investments Made: Over 60 investments made so far.

MMC Ventures is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage companies in the UK.

Industry Focus: Technology, fintech, and healthcare.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £5 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Interactive Investor, Appear Here, and Gousto.

Number of Investments Made: Over 60 investments made so far.

IQ Capital is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage deep tech companies in the UK and Europe, with a focus on companies in the areas of AI, machine learning, robotics, and advanced engineering.

Industry Focus: Deep tech, AI, machine learning, robotics, and advanced engineering.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £10 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Privitar, Speechmatics, and Paragraf.

Number of Investments Made: Over 40 investments made so far.

Pentech Ventures is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage technology companies in the UK and Europe.

Industry Focus: Technology, including SaaS, data analytics, and digital media.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £5 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Nutmeg, Outplay, and Semafone.

Number of Investments Made: Over 70 investments made so far.

Force Over Mass Capital is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage companies in the UK.

Industry Focus: Fintech, blockchain, and AI. Approximate Investment Size: Up to £5 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Plutus, Colendi, and Elliptic.

Number of Investments Made: Over 25 investments made so far.

500 Startups is a global venture capital firm that actively invests in early-stage UK companies in various industries.

Industry Focus: Technology, consumer, health, finance, and more. Approximate Investment Size: Up to $500,000.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Canva, Udemy, and Credit Karma.

Number of Investments Made: Over 2,500 investments made so far.

Hoxton Ventures is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage companies in the UK and Europe.

Industry Focus: Technology, AI, and consumer.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £10 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Darktrace, Deliveroo, and Babylon Health. Number of Investments Made: Over 20 investments made so far.

Entrepreneur First is a venture capital firm that invests in pre-seed and seed-stage companies in the UK and other locations, with a focus on companies that are building technology businesses from scratch and are in the deep tech, AI, and healthcare sectors.

Industry Focus: Deep tech, AI, healthcare, and more.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £500,000.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Magic Pony, OpenCosmos, and Tractable.

Number of Investments Made: Over 200 investments made so far.

Episode 1 Ventures is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage technology companies in the UK.

Industry Focus: Technology, software, AI, and digital health.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to £2 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Carwow, Shapeshift, and Tessian.

Number of Investments Made: Over 80 investments made so far.

Crane Venture Partners is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage companies in Europe.

Industry Focus: Data, AI, enterprise software.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to $10 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Cazoo, GoCardless, and Figo.

Number of Investments Made: Over 20 investments made so far.

Northzone is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage companies in Europe.

Industry Focus: Technology, consumer, health, and more.

Approximate Investment Size: Up to €15 million.

Notable Companies in Portfolio: Spotify, Klarna, and Trustpilot.

Number of Investments Made: Over 150 investments made so far.

Note: Please note that investment sizes and portfolio companies may change over time, and it’s always best to refer to the respective venture capital firms’ websites for the most up-to-date information.

Want to know which of these firms are most likely to invest in your startup and cut out the leg work of sparking their interest? Book a 30-minute free consultation call with one of Version28 ‘s funding strategists and find out how we can help today. 

The post Top 30 Venture Capital Firms in the UK 2023 (Early-Stage) first appeared on Version28.