Data sourced from Dakota Marketplace, the global LP and GP intelligence platform trusted by thousands of investment professionals. Learn More | Book a Demo
Dakota Marketplace tracks 4,567 single family offices globally, and about 2,300 of them carry a stated preference for venture capital. Only about 1 in 8 of those offices has made a direct venture deal in recent activity. Family office appetite for venture is far larger than family office activity, and that gap is where a venture fundraiser’s next conversations are.
The five stats below come from our Winning Family Office Capital report. Each one shows a different side of the gap between interest and action.
Top 5 Stats Showing Family Office Venture Appetite
1. 4,567 Single Family Offices Tracked
Dakota Marketplace tracks 4,567 single family offices worldwide. That is the full universe before any filter is applied, and it is the starting point for every number that follows.
Family offices are private, so they rarely announce their preferences. Dakota’s preference data is the most reliable signal of real interest available, and it should anchor targeting more than press coverage or public statements.
2. About 2,300 Have a Stated Venture Preference
Roughly half of the offices Dakota tracks, about 2,300 of 4,567, carry a stated preference for venture capital. A fund manager targeting family offices broadly can expect that one in every two prospects has already signaled interest in the asset class before the first conversation takes place.
Venture is not a niche preference in this channel. It sits alongside private equity and real estate as one of the default allocations for single family offices, particularly those seeded by a liquidity event from a technology or founder-led business.
3. About 1 in 8 of Those Has Made a Direct Deal
Hundreds of family offices have made a direct investment into a venture-backed company in recent activity, which is about 1 in 8 of the 2,300 with a stated preference. That number is a floor, not a ceiling, because it counts only direct deals. Family offices also reach venture through funds, SPVs, secondaries, and club deals, which are harder to track.
Even among offices that are active in direct deals, most have barely started. The large majority made just one direct deal in the window, and only a handful made five or more.
See which family offices have a venture preference but haven’t made a direct deal yet in Dakota Marketplace. Book a demo.
4. About 1 in 4 Recent Rounds Was Led by a Family Office
Among recent venture rounds with family office backing, about 1 in 4 had a family office as the lead investor. Family offices are not only following institutional capital into deals. A meaningful share of them set terms and anchor rounds.
Premji Invest is one example, leading nearly half of the direct deals it made in the window. For a founder or fund manager, that means a family office is a realistic source of a lead check, not just a participant.
5. Roughly Half of Direct Deals Are Seed and Series A
Seed and Series A rounds together account for roughly half of all family office-backed direct venture deals in recent activity, more than any other stage. Appetite is concentrated early, where a direct relationship with a founder and a fast decision matter most.
Many family offices have no formal investment committee layer to slow things down, which turns speed into an advantage at the stages where speed counts the most.
What It Means for Your Fundraise
The offices with a stated venture preference and no direct deal yet are the untapped list. If about 1 in 8 has transacted, roughly 2,000 offices have told us they want venture exposure and have not yet acted on it directly. Some invest through funds or multi-family platforms instead, and some simply have not been approached in the right way.
Start with the offices already writing checks, because recent, repeat activity converts faster. Then work the preference-only offices in order of fit: stage, sector, and whether the office is founder-led or multi-generational. Founder-led offices tend to move on conviction, while multi-generational offices are more likely to commit once there is a track record to point to.
To see the full data behind these stats, including stage appetite, deal leaders, and themes by deal count, read the Winning Family Office Capital report.
Find the Family Offices That Fit Your Raise
Dakota Marketplace covers 4,567 single family offices with stated preferences and recent deal activity. You can filter by venture preference, direct deal history, stage focus, and sector to build a target list of offices that have signaled interest but have not yet transacted. If you are raising a venture fund or a round, that is the list to start with.
Book a demo to build yours.
