German early stage investor Earlybird Venture Capital has missed the target for its latest fund after protracted fundraising was hit by a market drop in confidence in the venture industry.

Earlybird closed its fourth fund on €127m ($189m), a similar level to its third fund, despite having originally targeted between €150 and €200m. The fundraising also took longer than expected. The gap between the first and second close was 12 months, not the six-month period it had hoped for, the group said.