Irish VC funding falls 23% in 2025 amid tariff concerns and US AI boom

Funding for small and medium businesses fell by 23% in 2025, the first decline since 2018

During the fourth quarter the value of larger deals - valued at €30m or more - fell by 69% to €111m.

Venture capital funding into small and medium-sized businesses fell during 2025 for the first time since 2018 as concerns over tariffs and investors focus on US AI projects impacted Irish firms, a new report from the Irish Venture Capital Association (IVCA) has found.

According to the VenturePulse report, published in association with law firm William Fry, venture capital funding in 2025 was down by 23% to €1.1bn. Funding during the last three months of the year saw an even more significant drop off, falling by 46% to €291.4m.