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2021 Key Findings
The amount of funds raised by European private equity and venture capital managers, including breakdowns on stage focus, sources of funds by type of institutional investor and geographic source.
Total Fundraising
Total fundraising in Europe during 2021 reached €118bn, 7% above 2020’s figure and the highest level ever recorded. A record number of 841 funds raised capital during the year, the highest number of funds recorded ever. This number is 33% above the average number of funds raising capital over the previous five years.
Investors
Funds of funds & other asset managers provided 23% of funds raised, followed by pension funds (20%), and family offices & private individuals (15%). Capital from France & Benelux accounted for the highest proportion of fundraising (31%), followed by North America (19%). In total, 32% was committed by investors from outside Europe.
314 funds reached their final closing during 2021, raising a total amount of €97bn since inception. This is the highest number of funds reaching a final closing in any year ever recorded. The 17 funds raising more than €1bn on final closing represented more than 50% of the total amount raised.
Venture
Venture fundraising saw a record year in 2021, with €18bn raised during the year. This amount is 14% above the €16bn seen in 2020. Funds focusing on all stages of Venture continued to raise the largest share (50%), whilst there was a strong increase in amounts raised by early-stage funds from the year before (34%). A record number of 350 venture funds raised capital in 2021 – 98 of them were first-time funds. The top three sources of funds were family offices & private individuals (20%), corporate investors (18%), and government agencies (18%). The France & Benelux region continued to be the principal source of capital, with 37% of funds committed coming from the region.
Buyout
Buyout fundraising reached €71bn in 2021, level with the average for the previous five years. 181 buyout funds raised capital in 2021, which is the highest number of funds raising in any year. Pension funds provided the most capital (27%), followed by Funds of funds & other asset managers (26%), and family offices & private individuals (11%). Capital from North America was the most important source (25%), followed by France & Benelux (20%) and Asia & Australia (17%).
Growth capital
Growth fundraising reached the highest level ever recorded (€20bn) during the year, a 10% increase compared to 2020. A record number of 195 growth funds raised capital in 2021. Funds of funds & other asset managers provided the most capital for the year (20%), followed by family offices & private individuals (18%), and pension funds (18%).
Incremental amounts raised during the year
2021 fundraising at a glance
| 2021 | All private equity | Venture Capital(1) | Buyout(1) | Growth(1) |
| Incremental - Amounts raised | €118bn | €18bn | €71bn | €20bn |
| Incremental - No. of funds | 841 | 350 | 181 | 195 |
| Final closings - Cumulative amount since inception | €97bn | €14bn | €65bn | €13bn |
| Final closings - No. of funds | 314 | 132 | 86 | 66 |
Source: Invest Europe/EDC
Note: (1) relates to fund focus
In this section
Meet the team
Research
Julien Krantz
Research
Research Director
Sofian Giuroiu
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Research Officer
Daniel Irwin-Brown
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Research Manager
Lucrezia Lo Sordo
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Researcher