Angel Investment Data
The most comprehensive statistics on angel investing in Europe.
- All time data7000
Investment transactions
450Million € invested
1900Startups invested in
- 20211022
Investment transactions
52Million € invested
278Startups invested in
- 2022791
Investment transactions
37Million € invested
248Startups invested in
- 2023
Interactively explore 7000 investments into 1900 startups, collected systematically by FiBAN since 2010. Here are a few of our top findings.
- Angel investing is a foundation for economic growth, and its importance for the economy is increasing.
- The Finnish startup ecosystem is maturing.
- For every 1 M€ invested by business angels, 19 new jobs are created.
Did you also know that…
- 60% of FiBAN angels are expecting to at least double their current investments into startups.
- 86% are actively looking for new investments.
- 28% are open to invest in all industries.
Interested to learn more about more FiBAN angel investors? See our Past Research.
Finnish early-stage growth companies’ angel funding
In 2023, the total amount invested declined to 26,4 million euros. However, half of the investments were directed to new target companies.
Finnish early-stage growth companies’ funding surpasses 1 Billion €
Business angels invested 26,4 million euros in 173 companies.
Explore investments in Finland
In 2023, 95% of investments were made in Finland. In addition to the Greater Helsinki Region, Tampere, Turku, and Kuopio stood out. In 2023, the most popular regions for cross-border investing were Estonia, Switzerland, and Denmark.
We have compiled comparable data from 10+ years. Please note that the percentages are shares of the total sums invested.
- By region
- By municipality
Angel Investing by the Numbers
- Startups in healthcare have attracted the most angel capital in 2022.
- Business angels typically invest in early-stage startups.
- Most investments are done as co-investments with other angels.
Number of deals by industry
FiBAN members invest in all industries. While most angels focus on sectors that they themselves understand well, many are also sector agnostics, investing in lucrative opportunities across all industries.
Share of funding by industry in 2022
In 2022 the top three sectors in terms of funding share were Health Care, Science and Engineering, and Software.
Syndication practices
FiBAN members are highly networked investors. 87 % of investments made in 2021 were co-investments. Investing together rather than alone has many benefits both for the investors and the founders: a larger network, access to diverse skills and experiences and access to larger sums of capital.
Name Your Price: Valuation
- The median valuation of a startup that receives angel investment is 1.9 M€ in 2023.
- Startup valuations in Finland are increasing.
- Startups in Food and beverage have received the highest valuations.
Median valuation per year
Finnish startups that have received angel funding from FiBAN members have, on average, become more valuable throughout the years. This might be an indication of a maturing startup ecosystem in Finland.
Harvesting the Returns: Exits
- In recent years, acquisitions have remained the most common type of exit as large corporations choose to buy rather than build innovations internally.
- However, in 2023, bankruptcies became the most common exit type.
- Among FiBAN members, the share of very profitable exits has been increasing throughout the years, but in 2023, 63% of investments resulted in losses.
Number of exits remains high
Exits are the ultimate metric for angel investors. Years of failing and learning how to build a portfolio of startups have had an impact on angel investing for FiBAN members: the number of exits remains high. This might be another indication that angel investing and the startup ecosystem in Finland are maturing.
Return on investments
Successful exits compensate for the losses in angel investing. In 2023, although bankruptcies became the most common exit type for the first time, the share of very profitable exits remained similar to recent years.
Type of exits
Acquisitions have been the most common exit type in recent years as large companies choose to buy rather than build innovations internally. However, in 2023 the share of bankruptcies was the highest. Statistics Finland also notes that 2023 saw the most bankruptcies in 25 years.
Time of return on investments in 2022
Negative exits usually happen within a few years of investing. Companies going bankrupt do not survive for long as successful companies go through several funding rounds before possibly resulting in a positive exit.
Past Research
- An effective way to boost growth is to have an angel on board.
- Angels invest mostly in startups with fewer than 5 employees.
- Angel investing has positive repercussions on employment.
Angel Investor Profiles
FiBAN conducted an extensive member survey in September 2023. In total, 254 members answered the survey.
- How do angels invest and how much?
- What kind of backgrounds do angel investors in Finland have?
- Which industries interest them the most?
Find the answers from our Member Survey Data. (download link – opens in a new tab)
Impact of Angel Investing on Employment
For every 1 M€ invested by business angels, 19 new jobs are created. The research is based on data from FiBAN and Bisnode and includes 720 investments into 490 startups between 2013 and 2016.
One of the ways to boost growth is to have an angel on board. 4-6 years after an investment, 18 % of the startups have grown their revenue by more than 1 M€, compared to only 6 % of the startups that pitched at Pitch Finland but didn’t receive funding that year. However, 2 out of 5 startups have failed, indicating the high-risk nature of startup investing.
In terms of number of employees, angels prefer to invest in startups a little bit further down the road than many that pitched at Pitch Finland but did not receive funding.
Appendix
1. About FiBAN's data
FiBAN, one of the largest and most active business angel networks in the world with over 600 private investor members, annually conducts an investment survey of its members. The survey has been sent out to all FiBAN members since 2010, the year FiBAN was founded. This constitutes Europe’s most comprehensive yearly survey of business angels. Through quality research and analysis we aim to offer valuable and unique knowledge for the whole startup ecosystem.
Since FiBAN’s data is based on voluntary questionnaires annually collected from our members, it is more indicative than exact. The response rate has increased throughout the decade reaching all-time high close to 70% towards the end of the decade. Our figures consist only of the data provided to us: we do not cover all angel investing activity in Finland. However, by pooling data, FiBAN can look into trends and findings which benefit the whole angel investor and startup community.
2. FiBAN Data Sharing Policy
FiBAN handles all data confidentially and with care. All data is processed anonymously. Read more about our Data Sharing Policy in the document below.
3. Contact us
We are happy to discuss any questions, comments, or suggestions you might have related to data page! Send us an email at info@fiban.org.
4. Glossary
The glossary presents terms and definitions as used in the FiBAN research processes, most notably as used in the Annual Survey. It is reviewed annually. Open the glossary in a new tab: fiban.org/glossary.