Index Ventures, led by a team that includes the three Rimer brothers, has joined Coller Capital to be ranked Europe's most influential venture capital house, according to Private Equity News. The rankings have been based on the calibre of fundraisings, investments, exits and market perceptions. The data suggests European houses have been successful in competing toe-totoe with their more numerous US peers.

1=: Index Ventures Current fund: Index Ventures V 350m ($495m) (2009) Index Ventures Growth I 400m (January 2008) First fund: $180m (1999) (pilot fund of $17m raised in 1996) Main people (team of 24): Partners are Giuseppe Zocco, David Rimer, Neil Rimer, Danny Rimer, Bernard Dallé, Michèle Ollier, Francesco de Rubertis, Saul Klein, Dominique Vidal and Ben Holmes. Mike Volpi joined in July. High points: Almost all European VCs have struggled to form highquality syndicates with the top dozen US companies, reflecting the low status of the continental names. Index has broken into this elite gang over the past few years, as shown by its joining the B round for defensive patent aggregator RPX with original investors Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and Charles River Ventures Corporation, last month. Separately, it has moved into growth-stage deals with a large fundraising, clean-tech investing and expanding the team, with experienced executives such as Dom Vidal and Mike Volpi. What the firm said: "We like to back companies that are not down the middle of the pitch. We look for quirky businesses that cut across the grain. We try to make the most disruptive play in each sector we target."