Dawn Capital: Europe's Specialist B2B Software Investor

Dawn Capital calls itself Europe's leading specialist B2B software investor, and its track record is the evidence. Launched in London in 2007, the firm has raised more than $2 billion from global investors to back European B2B software companies, and now reports total commitments of $2 billion. It partners with founders at Series A and B, writing initial cheques of $10 million to $40 million, and funds its winners through growth rounds all the way to exit.

The most recent raise, announced as Dawn V alongside Dawn Opportunities III, totalled $700 million: a $620 million flagship fund — described at the time as the largest dedicated early-stage B2B software fund ever raised in Europe — plus an $80 million later-stage opportunities fund for investing from Series C onwards. Dawn's stated hunting grounds are four themes where it claims deep expertise: Data and Analytics, Security, Fintech, and Future of Work. Across its funds the firm has backed more than 80 category-leading companies founded in 16 European countries.

The exits explain the firm's reputation. Mimecast, formerly NASDAQ-listed, was taken private by Permira in a $5.8 billion transaction. iZettle was sold to PayPal for $2.2 billion in cash. Tink was purchased by Visa for $2.0 billion. LeanIX was acquired by SAP. Current established unicorns in the portfolio include Collibra, Dataiku and Quantexa. Dawn was acknowledged as Europe's top-performing venture capital fund manager by Preqin in 2023, with its funds consistently ranking in the top quartile globally for venture performance.

The partnership is led by General Partners Josh Bell, Norman Fiore, Haakon Overli and Evgenia Plotnikova. Beyond capital, the firm offers founders mentorship from operators who have seen B2B software scale before, an extensive network of industry leaders, and a hands-on approach to scaling across Europe, the US and globally — Quantexa's founder has publicly credited Dawn with investing through every follow-on round and helping the company scale.

The firm has invested across the continent from day one, holding roughly a 50/50 split of UK and European companies, and its funds have drawn backing from institutions including the European Investment Fund and the British Business Bank alongside US and European investors. That pan-European base, paired with a single-sector focus, is what lets Dawn claim peer-level fluency with the B2B software founders it backs.