The dramatic increase in investment received by Dutch tech startups in the first three months of this year did not continue in the second quarter. Investment also lagged behind the same period last year. The Dutch Startup Association (DSA) calculated this in its quarterly report.

In April, May and June, around 430 million euros were channeled to young technology companies in the Netherlands, DSA report. This is almost sixty percent less than the previous three months and about ten percent less than in April, May and June 2023. The first quarter of 2024 was therefore an exceptional period. In total, more than one billion euros were invested, spread over roughly the same number of deals as a quarter later. There were a number of large rounds of around one hundred million euros at that time, which increased the amount while the number of deals was lower than at the end of 2023.

No banger

There were no €100 million deals in the last quarter. The largest deal involved a $68 million investment in Axelera AI, followed by $42 million from BioBTX and $40 million from Mosa Meat. Three of the startups that received investments are involved in quantum technology (Qblix, Orange Quantum Systems and Q*bird). Three others are active in the AI ​​space (Axelera AI, CuspAI and Nebul).

Compared to the second quarter of the previous year, investment in Dutch startups decreased by ten percent compared to the previous year. This concerns around 430 million euros, compared to 475 million euros in Q2 2023. Not only did the total investment decrease, the number of deals also decreased by twenty percent. In particular, fewer deals were reached for companies in the first growth phase (Series A): from twenty to ten. There were more deals for companies in the previous phase (pre-seed): from fourteen to nineteen.

By total investment, the Netherlands ranks 5th in the EU plus the UK. British and French startups actually raised more funding in the second quarter than in the first. Maarten Cleeren, managing director of startup organisation Techleap, called for targeted collaboration between public and private financiers to scale deep tech companies.