It's a little anniversary — today Uniborn delivers the twentieth edition of the hottest news for European investors straight to your inbox! 

This week is full of ratings — just like before the end of the year, huh? We've rounded up the most interesting ones for you. Don't forget to subscribe so you stay in the loop!

🔥 Meet the Global Investor Leaderboard — it's interactive and evergreen

Pitchbook has now granted public access to a curated list of the most dynamic investors, allowing users to arrange the list according to industry, deal type, exits, and more. Of course, the first thing we did was to evaluate how VC firms perform across Europe😉.

Play around with this interactive directory by clicking here.

Oh, and just so you know, we've also compiled our own angel investor lists specifically for Poland, as well as the Nordic and Baltic countries.

🔥The spotlight is not just on investors, but also on founders. The lineup of nominees for the "Nobel Prize for Impact" is all set!

Did you know organizations tackling the world's toughest environmental and social problems receive less than 1% of global funding? Yes, it's a frightful reality when you compare GIIN and BCG data.

On a mission to address this disparity is a Stockholm-based nonprofit called Norrsken Foundation. For the second year in a row, they've selected 100 game-changing startups that are simply making the world a better place. These teams are taking on big issues like poverty, hunger, and pollution. The lineup will yield two champions at Stockholm Impact Week this upcoming September. It's like the Nobel Prize but for the VC industry! 

Drumroll please, because this year's list includes 41 European companies, up from 36 last year. Picture this: French wizards at Neoplants conjuring indoor plants to munch on air pollution. Then, we've got Sweden's Heart Aerospace, daring to electrify airplane engines. And don't forget Germany's Formo, whipping up dairy delights without the moo.

Germany's taken the lead, outshining last year's champ, Sweden. And the UK is rocking that steady second place for the second time. 

Image: Sifted, based on Norrsken’s data

And here's the kicker: wondering where are the seven of Europe's top ten climate tech fundraising cities? They're right in these three powerhouse countries, and they collectively brought in over €5.5 billion in 2022.

Get positive business inspiration by clicking here.

🔥 And to illustrate the heartbeat of European VCs, here is a selection of charts

Pitchbook keeps the market well-fed with crucial insights: just this week, they unveiled the European VC Valuations Report, breaking down the key takeaways into five graphs.

Granted, the report only covers the first half of 2023, leaving out the last two months. However, you can clearly see the continuation of the trend: venture growth is down (not that big of news), with both average deal value and valuations being hit the hardest (something a little more interesting but still obvious).

Zooming in, the median valuation for early-stage ventures in the first half of the year hit €6.2 million, taking an 11.4% dip from the 2022 annualized figure.

But here's the twist that fuels our optimism: when we drill down into the quarterly data, the second quarter shines with a whopping 27.5% jump in median valuation. This stellar rebound comes after three consecutive quarters of declines. And once again, we say it's like a thaw in the making!

Switching to late-stage valuations, they're down 13%. What's more, their median valuation took a rare dip, falling from €12.4 million in 2022 to €10.8 million in the first half of 2023 — the first decline in almost a decade, making it difficult to talk about the arrival of spring.

In striking contrast, angel and seed investment appears to be holding its own, showing remarkable resilience — which is truly curious.

Angel activity over the years. (Image: PitchBook)

This phenomenon is likely related to their lower public visibility, which makes them less vulnerable to the stormy shifts on the "mainland." What's even more intriguing is the strengthening of European angels — their investments have increased by an impressive 10.7% year-over-year, reaching €3.1 million in 2022.

Dive into the charts by clicking here, and the full report can be found here.

Cover image: Unsplash