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Europe's most active investors (Sifted)

Sifted's recurring ranking of the investors that made the most equity investments in European startups, published for each half-year and full year (with quarterly and sector cuts on its Pro rankings pages). It is a widely watched signal of who is writing checks in Europe.

Visit the Sifted most active investors site

Reliability
Grade B · 9/12
Publisher
Sifted
Ranks
Investors, Europe
Editions
5 since 2024
Method
Data
How items get in
Compiled by the publisher
Status
Active
Europe's most active investors (Sifted)
SectionEditions
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Editions

EditionPublishedTop of the listOn record
H1 2026August 6, 2026Not recordedAt the publisher
2025February 5, 2026Not recordedAt the publisher
H1 2025July 24, 2025SFC Capital10
2024March 7, 2025Not recordedAt the publisher
H1 2024July 22, 2024Not recordedAt the publisher

How the ranking works

Sifted tracks all publicly disclosed European equity deals in the period and, for the annual list, 'contacted investors to verify their deal counts' (per Graduate Ventures' summary of the 2025 list). Firms are ranked by number of equity deals. The 2025 annual list required at least 10 equity investments; the 100 firms made 3,196 deals, half of all European equity deals Sifted recorded.

List size varies by edition: top 15 (H1 2024), top 10 (H1 2025), 100 (full-year 2024 and 2025) and 50 equity investors (H1 2026). Separate Pro ranking pages cover quarters and cuts by investor type (VCs, CVCs, public funds, angels, debt providers) and sector (B2B SaaS, healthtech, fintech, consumer, climate, deeptech, AI-native).

Ranked positions: Each item has a position (1, 2, 3), with ties allowed. Investors cannot apply or pay; Sifted tracks publicly disclosed European equity deals and contacts investors to verify counts. Lists sit behind the Sifted Pro paywall; sector cuts are also paywalled and were not accessed.

How far to trust it

Superscout grades every ranking on six criteria, each scored 0 to 2. Europe's most active investors (Sifted) scores 9 of 12, grade B.

Transparency 1/2
Basic basis (equity deal counts, verification) is described; details are behind paywall.
Independence 2/2
Census of disclosed deals; no fees to be listed.
Evidence 2/2
Deal counts with investor verification.
Stability 1/2
List size and period change between editions.
Coverage 1/2
Top 10 to 100 depending on edition.
Track record 2/2
Five editions found since 2024.

History

Editions found: H1 2024 (July 22, 2024, top 15), full-year 2024 (March 7, 2025, top 100), H1 2025 (July 24, 2025, top 10), full-year 2025 (February 5, 2026, top 100) and H1 2026 (August 6, 2026, top 50 equity investors). Quarterly rankings for Q1 to Q3 2025 and 2025 sector cuts were published on Sifted's rankings pages. The mix of half-year and annual editions and changing list sizes means editions are not strictly comparable.

How it is received

Funds that place on the list publicize it (for example Graduate Ventures on its site), and trade outlets such as BeBeez republish the top of the list. No attributable criticism was found. The paywall limits public scrutiny of the full rankings.

Strengths

  • Deal counts verified with investors for the annual list.
  • Frequent editions (half-year and annual, plus quarterly cuts).
  • Europe-specific, covering local seed funds that global lists miss.
  • Sector and investor-type cuts available to subscribers.

Weaknesses

  • Full lists are paywalled (Sifted Pro).
  • List size and window change between editions, limiting comparisons.
  • Deal counts reward volume, favoring seed and angel-style funds.
  • Methodology is not published in the free text.

Open questions

Facts not verified yet. They stay visible so they are not mistaken for settled facts.

Superscout describes Europe's most active investors (Sifted) independently from the publisher’s own pages and outside coverage, linked below. The rankings belong to Sifted.

Suggest a correctionHow the research works
Sources and known limits

Last reviewed .