In Q3 of 2023, UK startups already amassed $4.9 billion from mainly US investors. This thrust the UK to the European top for venture capital. If taking three quarters of 2023 into account, British start-ups already attracted $15 billion, which is equal to France and Germany combined. However, the US and China still globally take a larger piece of the pie.
US investors are the largest funding source for UK startups for the first time in a year, according to a report from HSBC Innovation Banking (previously known as Silicon Valley Bank UK) and Dealroom. In Q3 of 2023, around 37% of venture capital from the US was attracted by British companies. This is an increase from 20% in Q2 of 2023, and more than the UK’s own domestic investment at 31% in total.
The UK government recently put some effort into encouraging the startup front, as it announced an agreement between Britain’s largest pension providers to boost their investment in fast-growing companies in July, which could inject £50 billion ($64 billion) into the industry if the rest follows suit.
According to the report, the UK is aiming for a total of $18 billion on startup in 2023, which is a half year’s sum of 2022, one third of 2021’s all-time record and $1 billion more than the 2019 numbers.
