Stalling growth in the Dutch tech sector has sparked urgent calls for fresh funding streams.New data released today reveals the number of new startups in the Netherlands is declining. The country is also suffering from a severe lack of local investors.The findings emerged in the State of Dutch Tech report by Techleap, a non-profit that supports startups and scaleups in the Netherlands.The report raises concerns about the nations funding landscape. In 2024, only 104 startups raised over 100,000 a 23% decline over the previous year. The number of deals, meanwhile, dropped by 20%.Myrthe Hooijman, Techleaps director of ecosystem change and governmental affairs, said the startup struggles were a worrying signal.We need startups to build scaleups that can grow to unicorns, Hooijman told TNW. The decline potentially weakens our future potential. We must accelerate the transition from research to ventures, and learn from expert ecosystems, together with addressing the need to expand access to early-stage capital.Dutch techs funding fortunesAmid the gloom, the report also exposed positive signs for Dutch tech.Collectively, the sector raised 3.1bn in venture capital during the past year a 47% increase over 2023. The countrys VC market remains the fourth-largest in Europe, behind the UK, Germany, and France.Dutch deep tech has been a big target for the funding. The sector attracted 1.1bn last year and now accounts for 35% of the ecosystem. Techleap credits the success to government initiatives such as Brainport Eindhoven. The Netherlands also raised two new unicorns in 2024: Mews and DataSnipper.DataSnipper, an automation platform for audit and finance teams, reached the milestone $1bn (965mn) valuation in February after raising $100mn ($97mn) in a Series B round. The companys CEO will share her story at this years TNW Conference.Mews, a hospitality management scaleup based at TNW City, passed the landmark a month later. The company hit a valuation of $1.2bn (1.1bn) after securing $110mn (101mn).Overall, the Dutch scaleup ratio has risen from 13% to 21.5% over the past five years. However, this growth still trails the European average (23%) and lags way behind the US (54%).Dutchinvestors have also slowed down. In 2024, domestic investment plummeted from 61% to just 15%.Hooijman urged them to expand their spending in growth phases.We need to continue our work to unlock the late-stage capital through institutional investors, he said.Alongside new funding streams, Techleap is pushing for improved access to tech talent. The non-profit has also called for greater European collaboration through a startup entity that covers the entire continent.The future of Dutch tech is a key theme at TNW Conference, which takes place on June 19-20 in Amsterdam. Tickets for the event are now on sale. Use the code TNWXMEDIA2025 at the check-out to get 30% off the price tag. Story by Thomas Macaulay Managing editor Thomas is the managing editor of TNW. He leads our coverage of European tech and oversees our talented team of writers. Away from work, he e (show all) Thomas is the managing editor of TNW. He leads our coverage of European tech and oversees our talented team of writers. Away from work, he enjoys playing chess (badly) and the guitar (even worse). Get the TNW newsletterGet the most important tech news in your inbox each week.Also tagged with