Venture capital investment in Europe has yet to show signs of a recovery, falling 2% to €709m ($784m) in the second quarter compared with the first, in contrast to the US where activity has picked up for the first time in three years.

In the UK, which is the largest European venture capital market, investment fell 18% on the preceding quarter to €194m according to figures from VentureOne, the venture capital research firm, and Ernst & Young, the financial services firm. This pushed the UK's market share down to 27% from 21% in the first quarter.