Digital and Technologies Sector Statistics – Financial Statistics
Published 4 June 2026
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1. Summary
This release presents financial statistics on private-equity investment in the UK Digital and Technologies (D&T) sector, measured by the value of fundraising raised and the number of fundraising deals.
The D&T sector is one of the 8 priority sectors in the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy. These statistics support monitoring and evaluation of the Digital and Technologies Sector Plan by providing evidence on investment activity in the sector.
The statistics are produced using Beauhurst company‑level fundraising data. They include breakdowns by company life cycle stage and by investor origin and distinguish between the overall D&T sector and its frontier technology component.
The statistics in this release constitute an ad-hoc statistics release.
These statistics should be used for:
- Monitoring levels in private-equity investment across the UK D&T sector and frontier technologies.
- Comparing patterns of private-equity investment by company life cycle stage and by investor origin within the D&T sector.
These statistics should not be used for:
- Direct comparison of the D&T sector with other sectors defined using SIC codes, or with other countries.
- Estimating total business investment or capital intensity within the D&T sector, as equity fundraising represents only one component of investment.
- Measuring total equity issuance across the D&T sector, as publicly listed companies are not covered in the dataset used.
- Drawing conclusions about non‑equity finance (e.g. debt finance or public grant funding).
2. Headline Figures
Estimates produced using the latest available company-level fundraising data from Beauhurst suggest that:
- Non-publicly listed D&T companies raised £8.3 billion across 1,284 equity deals in 2025. Frontier technology companies accounted for the majority of this activity, raising £6.4 billion across 743 deals – equivalent to 77.0% of total D&T equity investment and 57.9% of all D&T equity deals.
- In 2025, frontier technology companies secured larger equity deals on average than the D&T sector overall, with an average deal size of £8.6 million compared with £6.4 million across the wider D&T sector.
- D&T equity investment was concentrated in venture- and growth-stage companies. In 2025, growth-stage companies accounted for 41.5% of total D&T equity investment, while venture-stage companies accounted for 41.4%.
- Average equity deal sizes increased as companies progressed from seed- to venture-, to growth-stage. In 2025, average deal sizes in the D&T sector were approximately 3 times larger at venture stage than at seed stage, and around 3 times larger at growth stage than at venture stage.
- International investor participation played a significant role in D&T equity investment. In 2025, deals involving both UK and foreign investors accounted for 57.8% of D&T equity investment with known investor origin, compared with 30.2% for foreign-only deals and 11.9% for domestic-only deals.
- Average equity deal sizes increased with greater foreign investor participation. In 2025, mixed UK-foreign deals were around 10 times larger than domestic-only deals, while foreign-only deals were approximately 12 times larger than domestic-only deals.
3. Company Life Cycle Stage
Equity investment in the D&T sector is unevenly distributed across company life cycle stages.
Company life cycle stages are defined using Beauhurst classifications, which draw on multiple metrics including company age, employee count, revenue, valuation, and cumulative equity raised. Full definitions are provided in the technical report.
3.1 Seed Stage
Seed‑stage companies are typically early‑stage firms developing products and establishing product-market fit, often funded through grants, angel investors, and crowdfunding.
- Seed-stage D&T companies raised £590 million across 322 deals in 2025, representing 7.2% of total sector equity investment and 25.1% of total sector deals.
- Of this, £492 million across 202 deals was raised by frontier technology companies.
3.2 Venture Stage
Venture‑stage companies typically raise venture capital to scale operations, expand teams, and advance technology development or regulatory progress.
- Venture-stage D&T companies raised £3.4 billion across 653 deals in 2025, representing 41.4% of total sector equity investment and 50.9% of total sector deals.
- Of this, £2.7 billion across 374 deals was raised by frontier technology companies.
3.3 Growth Stage
Growth‑stage companies are high‑growth firms with significant revenues or market presence, often raising funding to support expansion into new markets or acquisitions.
- Growth-stage D&T companies raised £3.4 billion across 222 deals in 2025, representing 41.5% of total sector equity investment and 17.3% of total sector deals.
- Of this, £2.7 billion across 130 deals was raised by frontier technology companies.
3.4 Established Stage
Established companies are typically mature firms with stable revenues and proven business models, raising funding primarily for strategic investment or restructuring.
- Established-stage D&T companies raised £823 million across 87 deals in 2025, representing 10.0% of total sector equity investment and 6.8% of total sector deals.
- Of this, £416 million across 37 deals was raised by frontier technology companies.
3.5 Equity Investment by Company Life Cycle Stage
Figure 1 shows the share of D&T sector equity investment and deal count by the company life cycle stage.
Figure 1: Share of D&T sector equity investment and deal count by life cycle stage, UK, 2025
3.6 Average Deal Size
In 2025, the average size of equity deals was approximately 3 times larger from seed to venture stage, and around 3 times larger from venture to growth stage (as set out in Table 1).
Table 1. D&T sector average equity deal size by company life cycle stage, UK, 2025
| Life cycle stage | Average deal size (£ million) |
|---|---|
| Seed stage | 1.8 |
| Venture stage | 5.2 |
| Growth stage | 15.4 |
| Established stage | 9.5 |
4. Investor Origin
Equity investment patterns in the D&T sector vary by investor origin, with notable differences between frontier technology companies and the D&T sector overall.
Investor origin is classified using information on the investor’s head office location, derived from Beauhurst fundraising data: domestic‑only, mixed domestic and foreign, foreign‑only, and unknown. Further detail is provided in the technical report.
Equity deals with unknown origin accounted for £1.7 billion across 731 deals in 2025, equivalent to 20.7% of total D&T sector equity investment and 56.9% of total D&T sector deals.
This reflects a substantial share of activity where investor origin cannot be reliably classified and should be considered when interpreting the distributional results. In this release, percentage figures by investor origin exclude deals where investor origin is unknown.
4.1 Domestic-only Investors
- Deals involving only UK‑based investors.
- Domestic‑only investors accounted for £782 million across 329 equity deals in the D&T sector in 2025. This represents 11.9% of sector investment with known origin and 59.5% of sector deals with known origin.
- Of this, £435 million across 210 deals was invested in frontier technology companies.
4.2 Mixed Domestic and Foreign Investors
- Deals involving both UK‑based and non-UK investors.
- These investors accounted for £3.8 billion across 155 equity deals in the D&T sector in 2025. This represents 57.8% of sector investment with known origin and 28.0% of sector deals with known origin.
- Of this, £3.3 billion across 122 deals was invested in frontier technology companies.
4.3 Foreign-only Investors
- Deals involving only non‑UK investors.
- Foreign-only investors accounted for £2.0 billion across 69 equity deals in the D&T sector in 2025. This represents 30.2% of sector investment with known origin and 12.5% of sector deals with known origin.
- Of this, £1.6 billion across 47 deals was invested in frontier technology companies.
4.4 Equity Investment by Investor Origin
Figure 2 shows the share of D&T sector equity investment and deal count by the origin of the investor.
Figure 2: Share of D&T sector equity investment and deal count by investor origin, UK, 2025
4.5 Average Deal Size
On average, equity deal sizes increase with greater foreign investor participation. In 2025, mixed UK-foreign deals were around 10 times larger than domestic-only deals, while foreign-only deals were approximately 12 times larger than domestic-only deals, as shown in Table 2.
Table 2. D&T sector average equity deal size by investor origin, UK, 2025
| Investor origin | Average deal size (£ million) |
|---|---|
| Domestic-only | 2.4 |
| Mixed | 24.4 |
| Foreign-only | 28.7 |
5. Technical Note
These statistics are based on Beauhurst equity fundraising data for the 2025 calendar year, reflecting the latest available information at the time of publication. Data may be revised in future releases as additional fundraising activity is recorded.
The sector definitions used in this release have been developed at different points in time. While some company lists relate to 2025, others draw on earlier definitions. Full details of the definitions and methodology, including strengths and limitations, are set out in the technical report.
6. Feedback
This is an ad-hoc statistical release using exploratory methods to produce statistics for the D&T sector. We welcome feedback on both the statistics and methods used. Please contact: economicestimates@dsit.gov.uk.