HVCA published its annual Investment Monitoring Report

Budapest, 30 June 2026 – The Hungarian Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (HVCA), in collaboration with EY, has published the twelfth edition of its annual Investment Monitoring Report, providing a comprehensive analysis of the Hungarian venture capital and private equity market's performance in 2025.

In 2025, a total of €83.4 million was invested in Hungarian companies across 22 transactions. Both total invested capital and deal count declined significantly year-on-year, by 86.3% and 62.7% respectively. The Report notes, however, that 2024 figures were distorted by a single exceptional buyout transaction of nearly €483 million. Excluding this one-off deal, the underlying market trend shows a considerably more moderate correction, whilst average deal size increased from €2.1 million to €3.8 million.

Growth capital continued to dominate investment activity, accounting for 60.1% of total invested capital according to market statistics and 54.7% according to industry statistics. Industry statistics – which capture transactions carried out by Hungarian fund managers both domestically and abroad – recorded 35 investments totalling €90.4 million, with average deal size rising by approximately 52.8% compared with 2024. (Note: industry statistics include both domestic and cross-border investments made by Hungarian fund managers, whereas market statistics cover investments made into companies based in Hungary.)

Divestment activity remained subdued: market statistics recorded 19 divestments with a total value of €11.6 million, compared with €48.9 million in 2024. Exit activity was spread across several sectors, with the highest number of transactions recorded in biotechnology and healthcare, and in ICT services (four deals each), whilst the highest-value divestment related to a single agricultural transaction.

The most significant positive development of 2025 was the strong rebound in fundraising activity. This was supported by the launch of several large funds: a total of €464.2 million was raised across eight funds in 2025, representing growth of 103.8% compared with €227.7 million raised across six funds in 2024. Banks emerged as the dominant investor type, accounting for 90.2% of total capital raised. Some 90.3% of capital originated from the Central and Eastern European region. Whilst this capital concentration reflects strong institutional commitment, it also points to the continued narrow composition of the domestic investor base.

'2025 was a year of normalisation in the Hungarian venture capital and private equity market,' commented Balázs Haszonics, Chairman of the HVCA and Chief Executive Officer of Lead Ventures. 'Following an exceptional 2024, investment activity returned to a more sustainable level, even as deal count declined. The increase in average deal size nonetheless points towards a more selective and mature market. The strong rebound in fundraising is a particularly important development, as it may lay the foundations for investment activity in the period ahead.'

Dr Judit Budai, HVCA Board Member and Co-Managing Partner at Szecskay Attorneys at Law, added: 'Venture capital and private equity financing drives innovation, productivity growth, the creation of high value-added jobs and broader economic competitiveness. Although the sector's annual investment volume as a proportion of GDP is typically modest, it plays a significant role in financing high-growth, innovative, unlisted companies — making it strategically important from the perspective of competitiveness and innovation. In Hungary, the industry's investment volume amounts to less than 10% of the European average of approximately 0.6% of GDP. In our view, a realistic near-term target would be a sustainable domestic VC/PE activity band of at least 0.15–0.25% of GDP annually, converging towards the EU average over the longer term. Achieving this will require incentives for institutional limited partners — including pension funds and insurance companies — to invest, the retention of high-net-worth and quasi-professional investor channels, and a stable, predictable regulatory framework for alternative investment fund managers and portfolio companies.

The HVCA's 2026–2030 Policy Recommendations Package proposes concrete solutions to the structural challenges identified in this Report, including broadening the investor base, removing barriers to fundraising, easing restrictions on international capital inflows, and improving the operating environment for innovative portfolio companies.'

The full Report is available at www.hvca.hu/en/statistics/

The HVCA Policy Recommendations Package is available at: https://www.hvca.hu/hu/statement2026

Notes to editors

The annual Investment Monitoring Report is based on data from the European Data Cooperative (EDC), operated by Invest Europe, and applies two complementary methodologies:

• Market statistics — investments received by companies based in Hungary, from both domestic and foreign investors
• Industry statistics — transactions carried out by Hungarian fund managers, both domestically and abroad

Together, these two approaches provide a comprehensive picture of capital flows across investment, divestment and fundraising activity within the ecosystem.