London dominates as UK tech raises $7.8Bn in first half of 2025
Tracxn has released its United Kingdom Tech H1 2025 Funding Report, offering a comprehensive overview of the country's tech investment activity during the first half of the year. The United Kingdom emerged as the second-highest funded country globally in H1 2025, surpassing India and Germany, with the United States being the only country ahead in terms of total funding.
Despite a slight decline compared to H1 2024, the region saw strong growth over H2 2024, driven by significant activity in enterprise applications, fintech, and media sectors.
A total of $7.8 billion was raised in the United Kingdom in H1 2025, reflecting an 18% increase compared to the $6.6 billion raised in H2 2024. However, this marked a slight decline of 2% when compared to the $8.0 billion raised in H1 2024.
Seed Stage funding reached $1.3 billion in H1 2025, a 103% increase from the $623 million raised in H2 2024 and a 47% increase from the $884 million raised in H1 2024. Early Stage funding totalled $2.1 billion, representing a 32% decline from $3.1 billion in H2 2024 and a 47% drop from $3.9 billion in H1 2024. Late stage funding came in at $4.5 billion, rising 55% from $2.9 billion in H2 2024 and 41% from $3.2 billion in H1 2024.
Enterprise applications, fintech, and media & entertainment emerged as the top-performing sectors in the United Kingdom tech ecosystem in H1 2025. The enterprise infrastructure sector raised $3.8 billion, a 22% increase over the $3.1 billion raised in H2 2024 and a 4% increase compared to $3.6 billion in H1 2024. The fintech sector secured $2.4 billion in funding, up 49% from $1.6 billion in H2 2024, but down 28% from $3.3 billion in H1 2024. Media & entertainment saw a dramatic increase, raising $1.8 billion –an astounding 3,147% rise compared to the $56.9 million in H2 2024 and a 1,165% rise compared to $146 million in H1 2024.
H1 2025 witnessed 14 funding rounds exceeding $100 million, compared to 13 such rounds in both H2 2024 and H1 2024. Notable companies securing $100 million+ in funding included DAZN, Isomorphic Labs, Rapyd, FNZ, and Dojo. DAZN raised $1.0 billion in a Series D round, Isomorphic Labs raised $600 million in a Series D round, and Rapyd secured $500 million in a Series F round. A significant portion of these large rounds originated from enterprise applications, media & entertainment, and fintech. Only one unicorn emerged in H1 2025, marking a 50% drop from the two unicorns recorded in H1 2024 and matching the single unicorn seen in H2 2024. Quantum Base, RedCloud, and Vinanz were among the companies that went public during this period.
The United Kingdom saw 227 acquisitions in H1 2025, a 5% decline compared to 240 in H2 2024 and a 1% decrease compared to 229 in H1 2024. Worldpay was acquired by Global Payments for $24.3 billion, making it the highest valued acquisition in H1 2025. This was followed by Siemens' $5.1 billion acquisition of Dotmatics.
London-based tech firms dominated the funding landscape, accounting for 77% of the total funding raised by tech companies across the United Kingdom. Edinburgh followed as the second-most funded city, though at a distant second.
Mercia, Scottish Enterprise, and Octopus Ventures were the overall top investors in the United Kingdom Tech ecosystem. Fuel Ventures, Y Combinator, and SFC Capital were the most active seed-stage investors in H1 2025. Notion, AlbionVC, and Octopus Ventures led early-stage investments, while BeyondNetZero, Lauxera Capital Partners, and RPS Ventures dominated late-stage funding. Among VCs, United States-based Y Combinator led the most number of investments in H1 2025 with 31 rounds, while United Kingdom-based AlbionVC added three new companies to its portfolio.
The United Kingdom tech ecosystem demonstrated solid momentum in H1 2025, achieving global recognition as the second-highest funded country. Strong late-stage activity and increased seed funding were key drivers, with London maintaining its dominance as the primary tech hub. While early-stage investment slowed and unicorn creation declined, sectoral strength in enterprise applications, fintech, and media & entertainment underscored the diversity of investor interest. High-value acquisitions further reinforced the country's significance in the global tech arena.
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