Venture investing, fundraising in Europe tumble in Q3

Venture investing in Europe tumbled during the third quarter, mirroring trends in the United States, according to Dow Jones VentureSource.

Investors put $2.81 billion to work during the period, down 32 percent from a strong second quarter. The deal total across Europe came to 464, down 3 percent, VentureSource found.

Venture investing in the United States also retreated by 32 percent in dollars during Q3 with the deal count off 11 percent, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers and Thomson Reuters.

In Europe, fundraising followed deal activity lower. Twenty funds attracted just $1.34 billion over the three months. This was off 55 percent from a strong second quarter.

In investing, weakness appeared across most stages, with later-stage activity off 41 percent in dollars. Seed-deal making rose in money allocated.

Startups in the United Kingdom received the largest share of the money, accounting for more than a third of capital placed. German startups attracted a quarter.

The largest fundraise of the quarter was the $326 million raised by Northzone Ventures. The startup Roofoods, which does business as Deliveroo, closed the largest deal of $267 million.

A 50 Euro and a 100 Euro banknote are seen in a picture illustration taken Oct. 19, 2016. Photo courtesy Reuters/Leonhard Foeger