Following the record year of 2017, the German private equity market remained in strong shape last year. Venture capital investments, in particular, continued to trend upward.
Dr. Christian Stoffel, Spokesman of the Board of the Federal Association of German Private Equity Companies (BVK), says about the statistics for the German private equity market in 2018:
"In 2018, private equity firms in Germany invested a total of 9.6 billion euros. Following the record year of 2017, the German private equity market has once again underscored its strength."
While this represents a decline of 18 percent compared to the previous year, Stoffel noted that 2017 was also an outstanding record year. However, the investment level of previous years was significantly exceeded. Over the course of the year, a good 1,200 companies received venture capital financing.
Private equity market: Venture capital continues to grow
Venture capital firms were extremely keen to invest in 2018. After already exceeding the billion-euro mark in 2016 and 2017 with €1.1 billion and €1.3 billion, respectively, this positive trend continued in the past year. Venture capital investments rose to €1.4 billion.
Interest in German startups remains unbroken
A good 680 startups were financed, which again accounted for more than half of all companies financed last year.
“The upward trend in venture capital investments, which has now lasted for five years, is fortunately continuing,”
the executive board member Ulrike Hinrichs a positive conclusion.
"The German venture capital scene has grown in recent years, and international investors' interest in German startups remains unbroken. Now it's important to not only provide sufficient capital to finance the broader market, but also to create international champions in Germany. To achieve this, however, significantly more capital must be mobilized for venture capital, especially from German institutional investors."
