Global venture capital activity in Q1-Q3 2025 shows a seemingly clear shift in strategy as the overall deal volume year-on-year declined primarily because of an 11% decline in low-value (≤ $10 million) investments. GlobalData noted that high-value investments (>$100 million) surged 17% and billion-dollar deals volume also increased. This appears to reflect investors’ sharper focus on relatively fewer but stronger opportunities as they try to navigate uncertainty and look for ventures with actual potential for growth, says GlobalData, a data and analytics company.
An analysis of GlobalData’s Deals Database indicates that the aggregate number of VC deals with disclosed funding value announced internationally declined from 9,197 during Q1-Q3 2024 to 8,717 during Q1-Q3 2025, “reflecting a broader trend of cautious investment environment.”
Meanwhile, fairly low-value VC deals volume declined by a considerable 11% from 6,101 to 5,441. In contrast, high-value VC deals volume “increased by 17% from 306 to 359 during the same period.”
Aurojyoti Bose, Lead Analyst at GlobalData, comments that the global VC funding landscape in Q1-Q3 2025 reveals a rather “complex interplay of caution and opportunity.”
Bose pointed out that on one hand, investors seem to now be exercising greater caution in their funding choices “with overall VC deal volume experiencing a drop mainly driven by the fall in number of low-value deals.”
Meanwhile, Bose added that the growth in high-value investments highlights a somewhat strategic “pivot towards quality opportunities.”
Investors seem to be “prioritizing quality over quantity.”
As stated in the report from GlobalData, the number of ultra-high-value deals, those exceeding $1 billion, also “showed an increase, with the volume under this category rising from seven to nine deals.”
Meanwhile, the volume of mid-size VC funding deals (>$10 million and ≤$100 million) increased “by 5% from 2,790 to 2,917.”
Bose concludes that despite the overall decline in the venture capital deal volume, the surge in high-value deals is now “a clear indicator of a strategic shift among investors.”
Although investors are quite cautious now, they still remain willing to commit substantial “resources to select opportunities that promise growth.”