Forbes has released its 2025 Midas List, the definitive ranking of the world’s top 100 venture capital investors. Reflecting a more cautious investment climate, this year’s list is shaped by a handful of standout deals and breakout startups that significantly influenced investor rankings.
“This year’s Midas List is defined by the mega startups and their investors, who have benefitted from explosions in value over the past 12 months,” said Forbes Senior Editor, Iain Martin. “It shows how, in spite of the ongoing IPO and exit draught, the best venture capitalists continue to discover and back startups driving huge growth.”
Notable highlights from this year’s list include:
- Sequoia dominates with 6 spots overall, including 2 in the top 10 – Alfred Lin (no. 1) and Doug Leone (7), alongside multiple others just outside the top ranks.
- SpaceX is now the world’s most valuable startup at $350 billion, helping early investors such as Shaun Maguire (80) at Sequoia and David Sacks (85) of Craft Ventures, also known as Trump’s crypto and AI tzar, jump into the rankings for the first time.
- OpenAI, Stripe, Databricks, and Anthropic join the ranks of mega private startups that have surged in value over the past year, while longtime Midas List names like Uber, Slack, Lyft, and Datadog have aged out following their 2019 IPOs.
- Now there are five members of the “PayPal Mafia” on the list including Reid Hoffman (2) and Peter Thiel (3).
The Midas List is a metrics-driven ranking of the best venture investors in the world. Forbes recognizes investors whose portfolio companies have gone public, completed an M&A transaction, or raised financing at higher valuations. The list is produced annually using public data and submissions from hundreds of investment partners. To qualify, investors are ranked by companies that have gone public or been acquired for at least $200 million in the past five years, or that have doubled their private valuation to $400 million or more.