Key Takeaways
- • Sequoia Capital is closing its London office and shifting focus to the West Coast, with several London-based people leaving the firm, according to reporting that cites the firm's own statement.
- • The firm, which manages around $80bn in assets according to Yahoo Finance reporting, said it no longer sees a need for a local presence in London.
- • Sequoia said it will keep investing in British and European founders, supported from its Bay Area base.
- • The move follows a similar UK retreat by Andreessen Horowitz in 2025 and Coatue's exit from London in 2024.
- • Reported US venture funding has topped $500bn so far in 2026, while UK start-ups have raised more than $23.4bn this year per DealRoom data.
Summary
Sequoia Capital, one of Silicon Valley's most prominent venture capital firms, is closing its London office and pulling back to the West Coast, according to reporting by Yahoo Finance. The firm stated: "We are closing our London office, which means several people will be leaving Sequoia. We simply don't see the need for a local presence." The firm opened its UK office in 2020 and hired a string of partners during the post-pandemic technology boom. The decision follows what the firm described as an "expansionary phase" in which it opened offices around the world, and comes after it previously spun off its Chinese and Indian ventures into separate Asia-focused businesses.
The firm, which was founded in 1972 and is known for early investments in Apple and Google, said it will continue to back British and European founders with "world-class support from our home base in the Bay Area." Reporting notes that some of Sequoia's most successful UK investments, including a stake in AI voiceover company ElevenLabs, were led by US-based partners. Some current London partners will move to the US with the firm, while senior London partner Luciana Lixandru will remain in Europe as a partner.
The retreat is viewed as a setback for Britain's ambitions to attract major global investors and AI capital. It comes as venture dealmaking in Silicon Valley reaches record levels, with total US venture funding topping $500bn so far this year, already above the $340bn raised in 2025. UK start-ups have also enjoyed large funding rounds, with more than $23.4bn raised in 2026 according to DealRoom data, though this remains far smaller than the US market. Sequoia's exit follows Andreessen Horowitz's 2025 departure from London, which the firm made after Donald Trump returned to power, and Coatue's 2024 exit from the city.
Separate headlines from TradingView and Global Banking & Finance Review report that Sequoia is closing its London office and raising about $10 billion in new funding. The available supplemental reporting does not detail the fund or its terms, so the fundraising figure should be read as reported by those outlets rather than confirmed in the primary account.
The firm, which was founded in 1972 and is known for early investments in Apple and Google, said it will continue to back British and European founders with "world-class support from our home base in the Bay Area." Reporting notes that some of Sequoia's most successful UK investments, including a stake in AI voiceover company ElevenLabs, were led by US-based partners. Some current London partners will move to the US with the firm, while senior London partner Luciana Lixandru will remain in Europe as a partner.
The retreat is viewed as a setback for Britain's ambitions to attract major global investors and AI capital. It comes as venture dealmaking in Silicon Valley reaches record levels, with total US venture funding topping $500bn so far this year, already above the $340bn raised in 2025. UK start-ups have also enjoyed large funding rounds, with more than $23.4bn raised in 2026 according to DealRoom data, though this remains far smaller than the US market. Sequoia's exit follows Andreessen Horowitz's 2025 departure from London, which the firm made after Donald Trump returned to power, and Coatue's 2024 exit from the city.
Separate headlines from TradingView and Global Banking & Finance Review report that Sequoia is closing its London office and raising about $10 billion in new funding. The available supplemental reporting does not detail the fund or its terms, so the fundraising figure should be read as reported by those outlets rather than confirmed in the primary account.
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