A full 3.9 billion euros flowed into German startups in 2018—more than ever before. One sector in particular benefited from the VC boom.
Venture capital investments rose by 24 percent year-on-year to €3.9 billion in 2018, according to calculations by management consultancy Barkow Consulting. The calculation is based on multiple sources. The investment volume thus reached a historic high.
Almost every third VC euro flows into the financial sector
The boom in VC investments particularly benefited Fintech-industry benefit. In 2018, €1.1 billion flowed into German financial startups alone. This marks the first time the industry has broken the billion-euro mark. Compared to the previous year, this represents rapid growth of 55 percent. In 2017, €726 million flowed into German fintechs. Fintechs thus secured 29 percent of all venture capital investments in 2018.
At the same time, the number of VC deals fell significantly: After 141 investments in 2017, only 127 deals were closed in 2018. This represents a decline of 10 percent. This makes the fight for fresh capital more intense: In 2017, 20 percent of all fintechs received an investment. In 2018, the figure was just 16 percent.
